“What! You’re folded!” raves Stranger Things actress Millie Bobby Brown, snapping the phone closed in her hand. Likewise, Grammy-nominated DJ and producer Steve Aoki. “I can’t believe this is a phone. I’ve never seen anything like this before,” he says, while staring in awe at the forthcoming Samsung Galaxy Fold, in a 2-minute first look video Samsung has just released which shows off celebrity reactions ahead of the Galaxy Fold’s launch next week, on April 26.
Online streamer Ninja, shown getting his hands on the Galaxy Fold for the first time, proudly declares while looking the device over that “I think I’m in love. The amount of video games that will be played on this thing while I’m traveling … too many.”
Samsung made its first foldable handset, which carries an eye-popping price tag of $1,980, available to a select number of celebrities and tastemakers like those in the video to get their first impressions of the company’s new device that doubles as a phone as well as a phablet when unfolded.
Camera crews were dispatched around the world to capture the first looks from that group, which included, in addition to Aoki, Brown and Ninja, German footballer and World Cup winner Mario Götze, Parisian designer and blogger Jeanne Damas and YouTuber Casey Neistat.
You could argue that marketing like this is a slight bit of overkill, given that Samsung has already tried to stress it doesn’t intend the Galaxy Fold to be a mass market device. The price tag alone will help see to that. There has also been chatter the company sees the device as perfect for working professionals and older consumers with plenty of disposable income — not exactly the demographic that you would think would be swayed by seeing an actress or professional DJ rave about how sleek and amazing the handset is.
Nevertheless, it’s easy to see why Samsung would want to market the Galaxy Fold the same way any mobile company would want to build buzz and get influencers talking about a major new phone release. Samsung’s mobile business has been a little stagnant of late, competitors like Huawei keep nipping at its heels, and the release of the Galaxy Fold is a chance for Samsung, if nothing else, to regain a bit of the. Proudly declaring itself at the same time as an innovator, at the forefront of all things new in the mobile space. The early Galaxy Fold reviews have been intriguingly positive, on the whole, with many seeming to be along the lines of “I was surprised I didn’t hate it.” Not exactly the most epic vote of confidence, but it’ll have to do for now — and besides, we don’t have to wait long to see what the rest of the world thinks about Samsung’s first foldable handset.
