These Cool Foldable Phones Are Coming This Year, Just Not in the US

China's biggest phone companies have been churning out foldable handsets for release all over the world -- but not everywhere. With the exception of OnePlus, most of these companies aren't releasing their devices in the US. This may, at least partially, be related to Huawei's experience: The Chinese tech giant was placed on a trade blacklist as a result of US sanctions, first imposed by the Trump administration in May 2019.

But even without selling devices in the US, Chinese phonemakers have released some solid foldable phones that have vastly improved over the years, and they're worth highlighting. Here's a round-up of the most compelling foldable phones -- both book-style and flip -- that are expected to arrive this year, as well as a few of those that have already arrived in global markets in 2024. 

Honor Magic V3

The Magic V3 is the world's slimmest inward-folding book-style phone -- and it's scheduled to launch globally in a matter of days. Honor's foldable phone sets that record by literally a hair, but it's a record nonetheless. It has a 6.43-inch cover screen that flips over like a book to reveal a 7.92-inch inner screen. It boasts five cameras in total, complete with a periscope-style telephoto lens capable of 3.5x optical zoom. 

Under the hood, the Magic V3 is equipped with a 5,150-mAh silicon carbon battery. It's a newer type of battery for smartphones that can be replenished with the 66-watt wired charger, which comes inside the box, or via a wireless charger with support for 45 watts. We'll have an in-depth review of the Magic V3 coming soon, but in the meantime we did get an inside look at how this phone got its slim design alongside its durability testing.

Read more: Exclusive: How the World's Slimmest Foldable Book-Style Foldable Phone Was Designed and Durability Tested

Phantom V Flip 2

Tecno is gearing up to launch its first ever flip phone in mid-September, and the Chinese company is teasing its foldables ahead of the launch. An image leaked online of the Phantom V Flip 2 purportedly shows it'll have an on-trend large outer screen and two rear cameras on the outer screen, stacked in a vertical orientation on a circular camera bump. Tecno declined to share more details on the devices until Sept. 13, when they're due to launch.

The last two years or so have seen flip phones undergo a design transformation, with much of the change happening on the front screen. This may have been kicked off by Chinese phone-maker Oppo, which shook up the cover design of flip phones in late 2022 by introducing a vertically oriented cover screen to its first flip phone, the Find N2 Flip. The 2023 Motorola Razr Plus was then outfitted with a larger 3.6-inch cover screen. Samsung later followed suit, expanding the Galaxy Z Flip 5's outer display -- a design it retained with 2024's Galaxy Z Flip 6.  

Phantom V Fold 2 

Tecno is also preparing to launch its second-gen book-style foldable phone, the Phantom V Fold 2. An image of the device released by the company shows the Phantom V Fold 2 has undergone a redesign, featuring a larger camera module and possibly a stylus too. The camera module seen in the image appears to house three cameras, including what looks like a telephoto lens.

According to 9to5Google, prices for the Phantom V Fold 2 have leaked ahead of its launch, and it'll cost just over $1,000 -- a price that's significantly less than Samsung's $1,900 Galaxy Z Fold 6 and Google's $1,799 Pixel 9 Pro Fold. That US dollar price, however, was converted from the price in the African country of Ghana. Phone-makers tend to adjust prices based on markets, and it's entirely possible that the prices in countries and regions such as the EU, UK and Australia may be higher (especially because those countries include tax in prices) -- although it'll still likely be cheaper than its better-known rivals as Tecno strives to gain market share and brand recognition.

Huawei trifolding phone

A trifolding phone -- presumably from Huawei -- was seen in the hands of Richard Yu, the company's former consumer business division CEO, in August. These new images showed the foldable fully closed but, as the name implies, the phone would have two display creases to fold into three sections. 

According to Android Authority, the trifold phone doesn't look much thicker than regular book-style foldables when fully closed. I wouldn't be surprised if this is an accurate assessment in terms of hardware, given another Chinese phone-maker claims to have already hit that target. Earlier this week, Tecno unveiled a trifolding prototype that measures 11mm when folded close -- that's thinner than the Galaxy Z Fold 6 by a few millimeters.

Triple-folding concept phones aren't new. Samsung gave us a glimpse at trifold display concepts back at CES 2022. Prior to that, TCL showed a concept off in 2020. But none of them have been mass produced for commercial sales yet. The recent sighting of Huawei's trifolding phone has led to speculation that the Chinese tech giant may be first to bring such a phone to market. Huawei has declined CNET's request for comment on this topic. 

Xiaomi's Mix Fold 4

Xiaomi debuted its next-gen Mix Fold 4 in July. The device measures 9.47mm when folded closed, making it one of the thinnest book-style foldable phones sold commercially -- second only to the Honor Magic V3. The Mix Fold 4 has a 6.56-inch outer screen, which opens up like a book to reveal a 7.98-inch inner screen. Both screens have a refresh rate of up to 120Hz.

Xiaomi credits the Mix Fold 4's "all-carbon architecture" for reducing its weight and thickness. It also reduced the hinge's total volume. According to the company, the hinge floating plate, screen backing plate and middle plate battery compartment are all precision-molded from carbon-fiber materials. Despite the thinner design, Xiaomi says it's expanded the Mix Fold 4's battery capacity by 260 mAh, bringing the total capacity to 5,100 mAh. It has a silicon carbon battery, instead of the now-traditional lithium ion ones, following in the footsteps of 2023's Magic V2 from Honor. For more details on the Mix Fold 4, read CNET's coverage.

Xiaomi's Mix Flip

Xiaomi's inaugural flip phone launched in July, coming on the heels of the Galaxy Z Flip 6 and the Razr Plus 2024. And just like its competitors, it has a large 4-inch cover screen, but it's probably one of the brightest outer screens around thanks to a peak brightness of 3,000 nits, the same as the Razr Plus 2024. The company says you'll be able to meet most of your daily needs without needing to flip open the device. For instance, the Mix Flip's outer screen partition design, along with dynamic widgets, gives you quick access to the cameras. You can also check the time, weather and other notifications, according to the company. 

Oh, and it offers an AI experience too (because 2024). On the cover screen, you can see a pair of Leica-branded cameras in a vertical layout. They consist of a 50-megapixel main camera and a 50-megapixel "floating" telephoto lens, which should dynamically adjust its internal elements to optimize image quality across various shooting distances. Within its chassis, the Mix Flip has Qualcomm's Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 processor and supports 67-watt charging for its 4,780-mAh battery. However the Mix Flip lacks an IP rating for water- and dust- resistance, whereas both the Z Flip 6 and Razr Plus do. For more details, here's everything we know so far the Mix Flip and Mix Fold 4.

Huawei's Pocket 2

In February, Huawei debuted its second-gen flip phone called the Pocket 2. Apart from its unique design, among its most salient features is the presence of four cameras

Unlike other flip phones in the market, the Pocket 2 takes a different approach to the cover screen. Instead of a larger outer display, the Pocket 2 has a 1.15-inch circular cover screen that is vertically stacked above an equally-sized camera bump. Huawei says you can use the cover screen as a clock, for notifications and a second screen for taking selfies -- which to be fair, offers much less functionality than some of its rivals that allow for using most Android apps. In place of a large cover screen, the Pocket 2 has perhaps more external cameras than any other clamshell-style phone. In addition, it has a 4,520-mAh battery complete with 66W wired charging and 40W wireless charging, supports two-way satellite messaging through China's satellite navigation system, among other features.