Huawei’s horizontal “passport-style” foldable, unveiled ahead of Samsung Electronics’ rival product, has fallen far short of the South Korean company’s new device in sales. Despite aggressive marketing built around its “world’s first” billing, the phone is losing the early volume race.

According to Chinese tech outlet Kuai Ke Ji, citing figures compiled by a local market-research blogger, Huawei’s Pura X Max, launched in April, had sold about 1.02 million units as of early this month. That is essentially the same as the 1.01 million pre-orders South Korea’s Samsung Electronics recorded for its Galaxy Z Fold8 in South Korea during the first week of release. In other words, Huawei’s cumulative sales over roughly six months amount to what Samsung generated in a single week.

The concern is that the Pura X Max represents the sum of Huawei’s foldable expertise and is a symbolic product the company brought to market ahead of Samsung and Apple. The Pura X Max is a horizontal foldable with a passport-like aspect ratio similar to Samsung’s Galaxy Z Fold8, and the industry classifies it as the world’s first wide foldable.

Huawei executives were notably confident. Richard Yu, CEO of Huawei’s consumer business group, took aim at Samsung at the 2019 Mate X launch event, saying the device was “thinner, bigger and faster than competitors.” In an interview with U.S. media the same year, he said Huawei had developed a prototype targeting Samsung’s Galaxy Fold but “scrapped it because the design was so bad.” Ahead of Samsung’s tri-fold launch last year, he declared that “the only company that can surpass Huawei in the tri-fold market is Huawei.”

More recently, Yu Chengdong, a Huawei senior managing director, claimed on social media that “while we were preparing this wide foldable, we learned that a U.S. company in the same industry was also developing a similar smartphone,” adding that “this product originated at Huawei and we began development earlier.” The remarks were aimed at asserting the legitimacy of the “world’s first” title.

The market, however, is moving in a different direction from Huawei’s plans. With Apple entering the foldable market long led by Samsung Electronics in earnest, expectations are growing that a “Samsung-Apple duopoly” will take hold. Market research firm Counterpoint Research projected that Apple will take the No. 2 spot in the global foldable market this year with a 25% share. By that calculation, Apple would overtake Huawei — which has sold products all year — in just two months. Samsung Electronics is expected to hold the top spot with 38%.

Company2025 foldable market share forecastNoteSamsung Electronics38%No. 1Apple25%No. 2, on sale for about 2 monthsHuawei22%No. 3, on sale all year

Note: Counterpoint Research forecasts

Apple’s entry is creating a double bind for Huawei. Apple’s first foldable, the iPhone Duo, was engulfed in durability controversy shortly after launch. One Australian user said that about six hours after receiving the device, with fewer than 20 open-and-close cycles, he felt something odd beneath the inner hinge, and the screen soon split along the fold line with a “snap.” He said there were no visible signs of impact or damage on the inner screen surface or the outer hinge. Similar cases were reported in succession on social media in China and Japan, with seams forming during normal unfolding and the fold area then cracking.

The possibility of defects in individual units cannot be ruled out, however. Apple said the iPhone Duo’s hinge comprises about 100 parts, with an internal support structure to increase rigidity, and that high-strength glass, custom adhesive materials and titanium plates distribute bending stress. Test results were also disclosed in which a Wall Street Journal reporter repeatedly opened and closed the device about 32,600 times with a custom rig, after which the hinge feel was largely unchanged.

Price burden is another variable. According to estimated prices posted on Apple’s official China website, out-of-warranty repair of the iPhone Duo’s inner screen for a user without AppleCare+ comes to 7,998 yuan (approximately $1,200). AppleCare+ subscribers can have it handled for a 628 yuan (approximately $94) service fee.

The software ecosystem is also still in its infancy. Of 25 major third-party apps checked by a Chinese tech blogger, about 80% had not properly optimized their screens for the iPhone Duo’s large inner display. Even Apple’s own App Store app was found to display centered on the inner screen with blank space on both sides. Apple opened a submission channel for iPhone Duo-optimized apps on the 5th and mandated that iOS and iPadOS apps submitted to the App Store from April 2027 be built with the iOS 27 SDK or later.

The situation also serves as a point of comparison for Huawei’s Pura X Max, which belongs to the same horizontal wide-foldable camp. The Pura X Max’s inner screen measures 7.7 inches and the iPhone Duo’s 7.6 inches, overlapping in screen format and usage scenarios.

The competitive axis in the foldable market is now shifting from “who folded first” to “who sells more, and more reliably.” With the attention Huawei secured through its “world’s first” title and aggressive media campaign failing to translate into actual sales and market share, Apple’s market entry is expected to narrow Huawei’s position further.