Samsung was rumored to launch its first-ever foldable for a couple of years, but Samsung kept delaying the phone’s arrival. Rumored initially to be called the Galaxy X, we now believe the phone will be launched as the Galaxy F, and we have plenty of details about it, as the handset was featured in many distinct reports so far. And unlike previous years, we now know that Samsung is going to unveil the handset soon.
This time around, however, Samsung can’t afford to postpone the phone again, as Huawei is equally interested in announcing a foldable of its own. The two giants are going for the world’s first title, with Samsung appearing to be the favorite in this particular race. On the other hand, we just witnessed Huawei announcing what it claimed to be the world’s first processor at IFA, even though Qualcomm already told the world that the Snapdragon 855 chip is sampling to consumers, and even though the first handset in the world to run a 7nm chip will be an iPhone.
In other words, the first company to unveil a foldable phone won’t necessarily be the first to ship one to consumers. Samsung Mobile chief DJ Koh talked to CNBC about the imminent foldable phone, revealing the handset may be announced as soon as November, at the company’s developer conference. No word, however, on when the handset will hit stores.
Huawei, meanwhile, will unveil the Mate 20 series in October, and the Chinese smartphone maker might announce the foldable handset during its next press conference.
As for Koh, the exec said that “it’s time to deliver” on a foldable device, teasing how the device will operate. Samsung doesn’t want the phone to become a tablet and has devised a unique experience for it.
You can use most of the uses … on foldable status. But when you need to browse or see something, then you may need to unfold it. But even unfolded, what kind of benefit does that give compared to the tablet? If the unfolded experience is the same as the tablet, why would they (consumers) buy it?
So every device, every feature, every innovation should have a meaningful message to our end customer. So when the end customer uses it, (they think) ‘wow, this is the reason Samsung made it’.
The exec added that the development process is “complicated,” but that the company has “nearly concluded” it.
So we’ll all have to wait for that “wow,” as the handset doesn’t have an actual launch date. Moreover, the phone is rumored to cost around $2,000, although Koh never mentioned a price during its interview.
