A Samsung exec earlier this month said at CES 2019 that the first foldable phone will be launched in the first half of the year, something we had heard before. Since then we learned that the Galaxy F, which is what we call the device for lack of an actual commercial name, will be properly unveiled during the Galaxy S10 Unpacked event that will take place in San Francisco next month. And now we have a new leak telling us that the phone may launch in stores as soon as late March, or by early April at the latest.
The news comes Italian-language blog Tutto Android. Earlier, the site disclosed the alleged prices for the entire Galaxy S10 lineup, revealing RAM and storage tiers for the upcoming Samsung flagship. Presumably, the Galaxy F information comes from the same source.
The Galaxy Fold, as the site calls it, will launch in Italy towards the end of March, or in early April at the latest, the report says, noting that the phone will retail for around €2,000 ($2,272) in the market.
The price is nothing new. Previous rumors did say the phone will be more expensive than regular smartphones, mentioning the price will go anywhere from $1,500 to $2,000. Also, a few days ago, an unnamed Samsung exec said the handset could cost twice as much as a premium smartphone.
However, Tutto Android doesn’t have detailed pricing details for the phone, which suggests Samsung and its partners are still working on the details. A few months ago, a report from the UK said that local carrier EE will be the exclusive seller of the phone and that customers will be able to pay for it in installments.
That said, the blog does offer a much earlier launch date for the phone than we had expected. If it’s accurate, then it means other European markets will also get the phone by early April. Samsung would also launch it around the same time in other major mobile markets, including China, Korea, and the US.
