Google Pixel Fold vs Huawei Mate X3: Which is Better

Google Pixel Fold vs Huawei Mate X3: Even with the many US sanctions, Huawei is still making good foldable smartphones. And now that Google recently launched the Google Pixel Fold, the Huawei Mate X3 is one of the foldable phones it’ll compete against in the market. So, which is the better foldable phone? The Pixel Fold or the Huawei Mate X3?

It might interest you to know that as expensive as the Google Pixel Fold, the Huawei Mate X3 managed to be the more expensive device (in Europe). But to help you decide which you should buy between these two foldable phones, you should read this Pixel Fold vs Huawei Mate X3 comparison article.

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PORS and CONS: Pixel Fold vs Huawei Mate X3

Google Pixel Fold vs Huawei Mate X3

The table below explains the key differences between the Google Pixel Fold and the Huawei Mate X3. Below the table, I have explained which is better.

Specs	Pixel Fold	Huawei Mate X3
Unfolded	7.6-inch OLED, 120Hz	7.85-inch OLED, 120Hz
Folded	5.8-inch OLED, 120Hz	6.4-inch OLED, 120Hz
Chipset	Google Tensor G2	Snapdragon 8+ Gen 1
Camera	48+10.8+10.8MP 8+9.5MP Selfie	50+12+13MP 8+8MP Selfie
Software	Android 13	EMUI 13.1 (Europe)
Battery	4,821mAh	4,800mAh
Wireless Charging	YES	YES
Durability	IPX8 water resistant	IPX8 water resistant
Price	$1,799	€2,199

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Display and Durability

The first difference between both foldable phones is the display size as the Pixel Fold is smaller than the Huawei Mate X3. The Pixel Fold has a 7.6-inch inner display while the Huawei Mate X3 has a 7.85-inch inner display and while the Pixel Fold has a 5.54-inch cover display, the Huawei Mate X3 has a bigger 6.4-inch cover display.

The display panel of both smartphones is foldable OLED and has support for 120Hz refresh rate and HDR10+. However, the design of the display is different. The Pixel Fold has big bezels while the Huawei Mate X3 has slimmer bezels with a simple punch hole on the top right corner of the screen. The display of the Huawei Mate X3 looks better than that of the Pixel Fold.

Both foldable phones are durable as they are certified to be IPX8 water-resistant. Both smartphones also have strong hinges and an aluminum frame. The big bezels of the Pixel Fold are why I prefer the design and display of the Huawei Mate X3.

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Chipset: Performance and Gaming

The Huawei Mate X3 has a better performance than the Google Pixel Fold and this is because of the chipset inside. The Huawei Mate X3 features the Snapdragon 8+ Gen 1 chipset which has faster CPU cores and is paired with a more powerful GPU than the Tensor G2 chipset in the Pixel Fold.

However, the Huawei Mate X3 only supports 4G LTE network connectivity while the Pixel Fold supports 5G network connectivity. The Huawei Mate X3 has better performance than the Pixel Fold because it processes data and renders graphics faster but the lack of a 5G network is a huge blow.

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Camera: Photography and Videography

The camera sensors on both smartphones are different. The Pixel Fold has a 48MP main camera, a 10.8MP ultra-wide camera, 10.8MP telephoto lens, an 8MP front camera on the inner screen, and a 9.5MP camera on the outer screen. In contrast, the Huawei Mate X3 has a 50MP main camera, a 13MP ultra-wide camera, a 12MP telephoto lens, an 8MP front camera on the inner screen, and an 8MP camera on the outer screen.

The front and back cameras of both smartphones can record videos in 4K resolution. The camera features available on both smartphones include PDAF, Laser AF, OIS, optical zoom, gyro-EIS, LED Flash, HDR, panorama, etc.

The Pixel Fold and Huawei Mate X3 are great camera foldable phones. However, I prefer the colors of photos from the Pixel Fold because they look more natural and brighter.

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Battery and Charging

The battery inside the Huawei Mate X3 is a 4,800mAh cell which is slightly smaller than the 4,821mAh cell inside the Pixel Fold. Both the Pixel Fold and Huawei Mate X3 support wireless charging but only the Mate X3 supports 66W wired fast charging.

Both phones are good battery phones and you can easily get more than 9 hours of screen time with both smartphones. I constantly got about 19% of the battery left after using both phones every day. However, I prefer the Huawei Mate X3 because it has a bigger battery and also has faster wired and wireless charging (it takes lesser time to charge the battery of the Huawei Mate X3).

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Software and other features

The Pixel Fold boots Android 13 out of the box while the Huawei Mate X3 boots HarmonyOS 3.1 (China) or EMUI 13.1 (Europe) out of the box. The Huawei Mate X3 does not support Google Mobile Services and thus it’s very difficult to use Google services like Gmail, GPS, Play Store, etc.

The Pixel Fold has other features like stereo speakers, USB Type-C 3.2, OTG, NFC, Ultra Wideband (UWB) support, etc. While the Huawei Mate X3 has other features like a microSD card slot, BDS Satellite Message, NFC, Infrared port, USB Type-C 3.1, DisplayPort 1.2, OTG, etc.

See Also: Google Pixel 7a vs Samsung Galaxy A54: Which is better

Pixel Fold vs Huawei Mate X3: Price

The retail price of the Google Pixel Fold is $1,799 while the price of the Huawei Mate X3 in Europe is €2,199. This makes the Huawei Mate X3 more expensive than the Google Pixel Fold but does not make it better than the Pixel Fold.

Google Pixel Fold vs Huawei Mate X3: Verdict

The Huawei Mate X3 is a great foldable phone and is arguably better than the Google Pixel Fold. However, it lacks useful and important features that make the Pixel Fold a better foldable phone. For example, the Huawei Mate X3 does not support 5G and Google Mobile Services but the Pixel Fold does. The Huawei Mate X3 is also more expensive than the Pixel Fold.

If you live in China where Google Mobile Services matters less and the Huawei Mate X3 is cheap, you should probably consider it ahead of the Pixel Fold. However, if you live in the US or any European country, the Google Pixel Fold is the better foldable phone to buy instead of the Huawei Mate X3.