Huawei Mate X7 review

Design, build quality, handling

The design of the Huawei Mate X7 hasn't changed much since the Mate X6. But it did get better, tougher, and even more luxurious. Let's start with the materials.

The Mate X7 uses Kunlun Glass 2 on top of its cover display, while the back of the international model is covered with vegan leather in either red or black. The ultra-thin frame is rounded and made of polished aluminum, quite like on the Mate X6.

Then comes the hinge, which has been improved a bit for this year's release. It's made of steel components, as usual, with a high-precision mechanism with a strength of 2350MPa and yet zero pressure between the screen and hinge. The exterior of the hinge is made of the same polished aluminum as the phone's frame.

This year, Huawei has made the Mate X7 tougher than before. It is now IP58 and IP59 rated for dust, water and pressurized water jets resistance (up from IPX8). It is also better drop-resistant thanks to the combination of Kunlun Glass 2 atop the cover screen and a 3-layer composite structure on top of the foldable screen.

Finally, the Mate X7 features a new design for the camera housing, which Huawei is grandiosely calling Time-Space Portal. It's an evolution of the regular circular design of the camera deco they have been using in the past.

Left to right: Mate X7 in Red, Mate X6 in White, Mate X7 in Black

We have the Nebula Red model, which has red vegan leather back with a matching case bundled inside the retail box. The Black version comes with a black leather back, of course. There is also a Brocade white version that really stands out with its back made of a woven material, but it's unfortunately exclusive to the Chinese market.

Huawei Mate X7 colors

Now, let's explore Mate X7 in detail.

On the inside, the foldable 8-inch LTPO OLED display is ever so slightly larger than last year. It houses a tiny punch hole for the 8MP front camera at the far-right corner. Unfolded, the Mate X7 is just 4.5mm thin.

As we mentioned, this screen has a new 3-composite protective layer that allegedly has 20% better impact and 100% better bend resistance when compared to the one used on the Mate X6.

Like on all foldables, the inner screen is surrounded by about 3mm plastic enclosure. It's not that intrusive, and after a while, we stopped noticing it. And it's almost at the same level as the screen. Almost - meaning it will still gather dust at the border between the screen protector and the enclosure, unfortunately.

When closed, the Mate X7 feels about the same as an iPhone 17 Pro Max, not bulky, not overweight. We've finally arrived at the year when these large foldables offer the same handling experience as a standard smartphone.

The front of the folded device is home to the 6.49-inch LTPO OLED screen of matching 412ppi pixel density and 120Hz refresh rate. It also has a small punch hole for another 8MP front camera. The bezels are impressively thin on this one too.

The thickness of the folded phone is 9.5mm, and the screen is curved on all four sides.

Above the screen is the earpiece, which also acts as a stereo speaker together with its top-facing sound outlet.

The vegan leather back of the Mate X7 is smudge-resistant and really nice to touch - grippy, too.

Here you can see the new design of the camera housing. It juts out of the back a lot more than the Mate X6.

Inside this camera island you will find the 50MP primary, the 50MP telephoto/macro, and the 40MP ultrawide cameras. Also around are the laser emitter and receiver for autofocus assistance, the IR blaster, the LED flash and the color-spectrum sensor. Oddly, we also expected to find a microphone here, but there was none.

Speaking of microphones, there is one at the top of the Mate X7, and two at the bottom.

Also at the bottom is the other speaker, the USB-C port, and the dual nano-SIM slot.

Finally, the volume keys and the power/lock button are placed on the right side. The fingerprint scanner is placed on the power key, always-on and super accurate, as usual.

The Mate X7 measures 156.8 x 144.2 x 4.5 mm and weighs 236 grams - that's 0.1mm thinner than the Mate X6 and 3g lighter.

Handling the Mate X7 is a superior experience for sure. In folded state, the Mate feels like a regular smartphone, solid and balanced, and its vegan leather back provides enough grip for safe use.

In its fully open state, the Mate X7 turns into a full-fledged tablet with dedicated multi-tasking tools, too. This way, it becomes a thin device that feels lightweight and yet inspires confidence and feels grippy owing to the leather back. It is a pleasure to use and work with, play games, and most importantly, work with a few apps simultaneously.

Huawei has spared nothing to make the Mate X7 as premium as its price tag suggests. And they've succeeded - we wouldn't change a thing on this device as far as exterior and build quality is concerned.