If you watched the Oscars last night, you might have noticed a Samsung commercial for an unexpected product, one that doesn’t officially exist. That’s the Galaxy Z clamshell foldable, of course, a phone that anyone who follows tech news closely is aware of. The handset appeared in a large number of leaks in the past few weeks, including plenty of hands-on videos. Apparently, you can stumble into Z Flip units in certain stores, if you’re lucky, several days ahead of the official launch. The Galaxy Z Flip will be unveiled on Tuesday, alongside the Galaxy S20 series, and should go on sale on February 14th in the US and other markets. But Samsung’s Oscars ad only needed 30 seconds to confirm many of the recent leaks detailing the new foldable.
The successor of the Galaxy Fold will have a significantly smaller footprint. The Z Flip is practically similar to the Motorola Razr, a phone that’s already available to buy. When folded, however, the clamshell will be quite bulky, a seen in the videos below.
The phone will feature a foldable glass display, which should be a considerable improvement over the Fold, as it’ll increase the screen durability and prevent accidental scratches. The ad, however, notes that the phone will have a screen crease, something we’ve come to expect from foldables, Z Flip included.
https://twitter.com/reckless/status/1226678928120655872
On the exterior, a secondary display will display battery life, time, and notifications. As you can see in the clip, it’s a full-color screen, and it’ll even let you accept or reject incoming calls.
The commercial also confirms the phone can be used in a laptop-like mode during video calls, or when taking selfies. That means the hinge supports unfolding the phone at various angles.
Samsung just showed off its new Fold during an Oscars commercial. That’s one way to announce something. pic.twitter.com/rtSJ3jvkif
— Mark Gurman (@markgurman) February 10, 2020
The video doesn’t tell us what the phone is called, what it’ll cost, and when it launches. Instead, Samsung is teasing is February 11th launch event. Rumors, however, revealed all those details. The Galaxy Z Flip should go on sale on February 14th for $1,400.
