This wide phone has a smart trick for one-handed use, and Samsung and Apple should take notes

Samsung and HUAWEI have both released wide foldables in 2026, coming years after OPPO and Google first revealed them. However, HUAWEI has also recently unveiled a conventional wide phone dubbed the Pura X View. One concern about this form factor is one-handed use, but the Pura X View has a cool solution.

Reviewer Vincent Zhong posted his HUAWEI Pura X View hands-on video on YouTube, and it turns out the phone can automatically detect whether you’re holding it with your left or right hand. The device can then adjust certain UI elements accordingly.

The HUAWEI phone can align the keyboard to the left or right based on which hand is holding the device. The accept/reject buttons for phone calls can also switch to the left or right edges of the screen, based on the hand you’re using. Furthermore, Zhong notes that some controls for the music player switch sides based on the detected hand.

It’s unclear how HUAWEI is detecting the user’s specific hand, though. It’s possible that the software is detecting a palm touching the left or right side of the screen. I also noticed that the reviewer could swipe through e-reader pages via the power button. This makes me wonder whether the detection is based on a finger touching the power button. Another possibility is that the company has sensors in the frame for a more advanced solution, although a software-based approach would be cheaper.

In any event, I’d love to see a similar feature on wide phones from other brands. This would be a great addition to phones like the Galaxy Z Fold 8 and upcoming iPhone Ultra, with their wide cover screens. It would even be a handy feature on book-style foldables in general, owing to their large internal screens. Either way, it shows that HUAWEI’s knack for innovation hasn’t been snuffed out by the US trade ban.

This isn’t the only unique feature on the Pura X View. HUAWEI’s phone can apparently use AI to turn static images in certain ebooks into short video clips. The showcased examples don’t look great, but it’s an interesting addition nonetheless. The phone also packs a 7,000mAh battery with 66W wired charging and a large 200MP main camera (1/1.28-inch, RYYB). There’s no word on other specs, while HUAWEI hasn’t revealed pricing or availability details just yet.