Wow -- Samsung has knocked it out of the park. Yup, it's expensive but what I'm most impressed with is just how well the folding technology is integrated into Samsung's version of Android.
A few years ago I'd expect something like this from Apple, but they're far too concerned about providing new "animojis" instead of creating something truly innovative like the Fold -- and again, the way that the OS, Apps and the hardware work together is fantastic.
A 4.6 inch cover display is nice. Why not just ditch the folding junk and fill the interior spaces with more battery. That'd eliminate a failure-prone set of physically movable parts and offer a lot of endurance in a durable device.
I'm trying to understand what you mean, but I'm having difficulty doing so. Are you suggesting that they should have not added the folding mechanism to a device literally called the "Galaxy Fold" and instead made what would have amounted to an oddly shaped tablet?
At 2600$ + 390$ of taxes in canadian currency... you are insane to think this. We need to put in perspective what 3000$ is really worth...
- 3-4 months rent of a nice apartment - 10 months of grocery - A used cheap car - 1 semester of University in Quebec - 3000$ net = 5000$ of gross salary - 1 year of municipality taxes
Just no... I am earning 6 figures, but this is insane... it is indecent.
Any new tech is bound to be expensive. The first time adopters have to pay for the R&D involved. Like whn the curved screen first appeared, it was just too irrationally expensive, but has become more commonplace since. Same will have with foldable devices
Not the point. The only new feature is the screen. It is still a phone. It is not doing anything more than another smart phone except providing a wider screen.
The point is at which point people are not going to support a company/product. Apple was already disconnected with their iPhone XS, but this a totally new level of indecency.
You can find other product that is going to satisfy your needs as long as it is not bragging rights, because this is the only thing this thing does.
Well, yeah. They're going to sell quite a few of these to wealthy people that love to flaunt their money. I guess there are worse things to blow cash on... they could be one of those people with $10K workstation-class systems that use it to run Minecraft.
With that being said even if I had the money it just seems like it's such an in-between size. I don't feel like it would be so much more useful than a typical large smartphone, if you want to do anything substantial you'd still want a tablet or ultrathin.
This kind of phone is not inherently expensive, it's just that the initial RnD and the "being first" factor that make this particular phone expensive. I'm really excited about this launch, because this marks the first step towards *affordable* foldable phones. It may take a while still, but now at least they are a reality.
Where are you living where a 'nice' apartment is $1000 or less? If you are making 6 figures and your rent is less than $1,000, you could buy several of these and never feel the effect. $300/month for groceries means you eat like a college student. I suppose you could eat OK at $75/week, but you're certainty not eating out at all. If you are making 6 figures and driving a $3,000 car, you have probably made bad choices to make the imperative.
I think you just have a problem paying for cutting edge technology. That's fine - just don't make it about being unaffordable for someone making 6 figures.
I don't think eva was trying to imply those are THEIR costs, and I'm sure they could afford one with that kind of income. There's some exaggeration but the phone IS outrageously priced. It's not just that it's cutting edge, the bigger issue is that it has no direct competition at present. In a year we'll probably have something like that in the ~1K or so ballpark.
I am having a 3 bedroom home near Ottawa. House cost 300K$, however, taxes are 45% of my salary. But yeah, I am an electrical engineer and I make a good salary, but that doesn't mean because I can throw money out of the window without any worry that I am doing so.
I paid my car cash brand new, I am just that kind of person, but even if I am pushing for technology, I am not agreeing with this because it is nothing more than a gadget that bring NOTHING new in terms of features at an indecent price. You can have a tablet doing the same damn thing at a third of the cost... it just doesn't fold in your pocket.
Thanks for the range of colorful comparisons. I often see iPhone users snapping magazine content at the bookstore, or cramming into public buses with the rest of the Android flocks. It'll be amusing to see this device stuck in a line at a dollar store, and whatever person that comes attached with it.
Other people's spending decisions almost never make sense to yourself. Another way to think of this is that a $3000 device used for 3 years is $1000/yr or $83.33/mo. If you buy a $4 cup of coffee at Starbucks every morning on the way to work, that works out to about $87/mo.
If you care about the price of this phone, it isn't for you. Like Samsung said, they're looking at building truly luxury devices. This is a first prototype for early adopters and rich people who want to show off. It isn't for someone who looks at price tags first.
Yup, but I also remember paying $1700 for my first plasma TV (it was even 480p!). It was most certainly considered a luxury item.
Give it a year and a folding phone will no longer be a "luxury" item but I'd guess that the price would be competitive with whatever Apple is flogging.
I wonder what Apple is going to bring next year. Pretty sure they can't stand NOT having the most expensive phone on the planet (ignoring the jewelry covered ones).
Honest question: Is $2000 somehow a lot? Between the unbelievable bitching about Apple's $1500 or whatever phones and now everything losing their shit over a $2000 phone, I'm starting to wonder if literally every single one of you is poor, and shouldn't own a smart phone to begin with.
Hate to break it to you, but there's a pretty huge group of us out here for whom $2000, while not Jeff Bezos-level pocket change, is hardly what I'd call "expensive." It's just not a lot of money to me or to most of the people in my circle. If it is for you, well, there's a ton of other more basic phones for less money. Enjoy. The rest of us have no such restrictions.
Given that the median income in Germany is 1650 Euro per month and $30000 per year for the US there's atleast 60% of the population in these two countries, who'll never be able to pay that for a phone. And that's the situation in basically all western countries.
Statistics are never that simple, the median U.S. income for a full time employed american male over 25 is over $60,000. Most Canadians have no idea how far behind we are becoming (Canada used to have higher income than the U.S. when I was born). The low number of $30,000 includes people who are young or barely working. It kind of understates things by half.
Median for a man or woman with a university degree is almost $80,000. The target market for this kind of thing. Still too expensive for me with my weak CAD ;)
C'mon, this phone is aimed at the top 10% of earners, whether they be young tech geeks in good jobs with few other outgoings, or older businesspeople looking for a show-off gadget.
Nobody on $30k a year is going to seriously consider a $2k phone, although they might consider a $400 mid-range Huawei/Honor or Galaxy A series device.
IMO this doesn't gain a lot of screen area for the gain in fatness. It'd be a reasonable eBook Reader, but I think I'd rather pay half of the amount for a far slimmer device with a thinner display.
I think it's less, "I can't afford it," and more "It's too expensive because it's more than I'm used to spending on a flagship phone."
I'm sure plenty of people could afford it, but think it's too expensive because they spent less than half the asking price of this on their last flagship smartphone.
hate to break it to you The Garden Variety it IS expensive to those who have better things to spend their money on. and unlike you we have more brains then money, or just want bragging rights.... the rest of us.. dont need to, or want to brag about spending money like you seem to have no issues doing, if you spend money like that.. good for you.. it wont impress me at all..
I am shocked by how much it syx, this kind of product makes me want to find a better planet. And the name is perfect, Samsung just gives up on product design.
When folded has a 4.58 inch small display and big bezels - also has 1 selfie cam. It's also thick and because it is thick they had to reduce the width so you can hold it. It's a brick with a tiny display for a terrible phone. Reduced width results in a smaller display for the large one. And the big screen has a large cutout for 2 selfie cams and whatever other sensors. This cutout is so so stupid, they had no need for it, not even if they wanted a cam (that they do not need), they could have used a popup and with that, they could have removed the one for the small screen and save a buck. The big display can't fold on itself flat, the curvature needs a bit of a radius so when folded, the device is thicker on one side and thinner on the other. And ofc the big screen folds the wrong way, likely because they could nto figure out a cover material that can take the abuse. And priced at 1980$
This thing is an avalanche of stupid compromises. How in the name of everything, do these people keep their jobs? They are worst than zero at their jobs. Foldables are a gigantic opportunity and they c... all over it Do it right and sell tens of millions per quarter not 15k. This is not their iPhone moment, they will never have and iPhone moment if this disaster is shown in public. You can't make a good product ,ever, if you think that this one is not insane.
I agree with you except for one thing... I think it will sell quite well, people only care about gimmicks, that is why we have notched-underdisplay-popup-headphonejackless-pentalens-faceID-reversewireless-animoji phones selling well and last year's S9 (witch had the best design that was much better than a retarded hole in the screen) sold terribly because it had a little bezel and no gimmick.
This is ver 1.0 of a commercial available foldable phone that becomes a very useable 4x3 tablet. (The 4.58 screen was perfect for the iPhone. ;p I jest.)
I think for an initial product lunch in kind of a new category.....it's quite a good attempt. ver 2.0 will be better
Royole had an AMOLED foldable phone at CES 2019 https://www.royole.com/flexpai As Engadget wrote about the Royole Flexpai, "Yes, this is a real product that you can buy right now. Yes, this basically unknown company beat Samsung to market with a foldable smartphone. And yes, it actually works."
Do what math? We're just stating the fact that Samsung is not first with a foldable phone. Do you have an article I can read about the businessmen that stole this technology from Samsung? I'd like to read it.
Great points, agreed. Not only that, these are basically obsolete once the battery dies out, while the GPU lives on until it dies.
Exactly, Qualcomm even has that Ultrasonic tech which Samsung uses in their prized S10 lineup Samsung didn't even care to mention them, unfortunate how the innovator is now looked at due tot eh stupid gouging Apple trash.
I predicted, based on published patent info, a couple of years ago that a folding phone was in the near future. Samsung, alas, has done it wrong. folks don't have much need for another phablet, which is all this is.
the gold mine is a 'standard' smartphone that flips like the old phlipphone. now, that would be very much more useful. and could be priced in line, more or less, with existing ones. stuff it in your pocket and all that.
as to whom will plunk down so much for a device? not so many, even if they can spare the moolah. it's just another phablet. the problem for capitalists: you only make money if your running your machines 24/7/365 spitting, and selling, product. fancy Swiss watches have a teeny market share and profit. Apple is failing, and this won't help Samsung.
I am ok with the price. This is 1st gen product for super rich. Question is will it go down in price in next few iterations. I hope so. I would be in at half this price.
For all of that money, so far, no sign of even a micro SD card reader for expandability. If they want to charge an arm and a leg at least they can help slow down the inevitable obsolescence of the device by including basic necessities that at least some of their customers would appreciate and find useful.
Like a Nokia Communicator with dual interior screens. Those were chunky old things that were proper tiny computers, back when mobile Internet didn't exist.
Apple and Samsung have a symbiotic relationship. Samsung experiments. Apple figures out what works. Samsung copies the finished product. That’s totally on display here. We all know that foldable displays are the future. Samsung puts out a ridiculous device for $2000 today. Some features will stick. Apple will release a version that works, and the industry will follow. Everyone wins. Samsung makes more money selling displays to Apple than selling its own phones. The Galaxy Fold is basically a memo to Apple as to what is possible.
Missed the start of the livestream yesterday. Did they address how the $2000 folding plastic screen is going to hold up to folding/pockets/every day use? (I'm sure they didn't because it wont)
This is an amazing device, to be sure, but, I'm not so sure about the absolute value proposition for all but the most die hard of road warriors. Lets compare this to the following: Purchase a mid-tier modern smartphone. That'll run you around $350 for something that can do almost anything well. Then, buy a top of the line Android tablet without integrated cellular modem. That'll run you, save for a couple of the exotics, around $350 as well. For $700, you've got something that tablets well, something that phones well, and, with just your personal hotspot on your phone, you can have the tablet be fully functional.
Do you have to carry around an extra device? Yes. How often, when you are out and about without a bag of some sort, would you want to use a tablet? I suggest that that is a very rare case. I just don't see this as being anything more than a vanity product at north of $1000. At less than that price, you start to get value as you have something with top of the line performance, and the functionality of two different devices that would exceed its price at that performance level.
Is it amazing that they can do this? Certainly! Are there going to be people buying it that have more money than sense? Of course. I just don't see the point at that price.
samsung has jumped the shark. its a double wide smartphone. for 2000 you get a double wide. i dont mind paying extra for new useful things. a doublewide smartphone doesnt provide me with much use beyond a samsung 9, 9+ or an iphone.
use the foldable tech and give me a smartphone that folds up to half its size. thats something i would be interested in.
only one thing that comes to mind, and this could kick the doldrums in the industry. for those who have seen "WestWorld", notice their foldable tablet? ;-)
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johnnycanadian - Wednesday, February 20, 2019 - link
Wow -- Samsung has knocked it out of the park. Yup, it's expensive but what I'm most impressed with is just how well the folding technology is integrated into Samsung's version of Android.A few years ago I'd expect something like this from Apple, but they're far too concerned about providing new "animojis" instead of creating something truly innovative like the Fold -- and again, the way that the OS, Apps and the hardware work together is fantastic.
gmskking - Wednesday, February 20, 2019 - link
I haven't been this excited for a smartphone since they first came out.PeachNCream - Thursday, February 21, 2019 - link
A 4.6 inch cover display is nice. Why not just ditch the folding junk and fill the interior spaces with more battery. That'd eliminate a failure-prone set of physically movable parts and offer a lot of endurance in a durable device.skavi - Friday, February 22, 2019 - link
I'm trying to understand what you mean, but I'm having difficulty doing so. Are you suggesting that they should have not added the folding mechanism to a device literally called the "Galaxy Fold" and instead made what would have amounted to an oddly shaped tablet?PeachNCream - Friday, February 22, 2019 - link
The name is just a marketing identity and those are probably one of the least complex elements to change in a product.grahad - Friday, February 22, 2019 - link
So you want a tablet? They already make those.peevee - Monday, February 25, 2019 - link
Samsung web brigade is so obvious.eva02langley - Wednesday, February 20, 2019 - link
At 2600$ + 390$ of taxes in canadian currency... you are insane to think this. We need to put in perspective what 3000$ is really worth...- 3-4 months rent of a nice apartment
- 10 months of grocery
- A used cheap car
- 1 semester of University in Quebec
- 3000$ net = 5000$ of gross salary
- 1 year of municipality taxes
Just no... I am earning 6 figures, but this is insane... it is indecent.
leo_sk - Wednesday, February 20, 2019 - link
Any new tech is bound to be expensive. The first time adopters have to pay for the R&D involved. Like whn the curved screen first appeared, it was just too irrationally expensive, but has become more commonplace since. Same will have with foldable deviceseva02langley - Wednesday, February 20, 2019 - link
Not the point. The only new feature is the screen. It is still a phone. It is not doing anything more than another smart phone except providing a wider screen.The point is at which point people are not going to support a company/product. Apple was already disconnected with their iPhone XS, but this a totally new level of indecency.
You can find other product that is going to satisfy your needs as long as it is not bragging rights, because this is the only thing this thing does.
Alexvrb - Wednesday, February 20, 2019 - link
Well, yeah. They're going to sell quite a few of these to wealthy people that love to flaunt their money. I guess there are worse things to blow cash on... they could be one of those people with $10K workstation-class systems that use it to run Minecraft.With that being said even if I had the money it just seems like it's such an in-between size. I don't feel like it would be so much more useful than a typical large smartphone, if you want to do anything substantial you'd still want a tablet or ultrathin.
Peskarik - Thursday, February 21, 2019 - link
Wealthy will buy Apple. This is for geeks and teenagers.imaheadcase - Thursday, February 21, 2019 - link
None of which can afford it.ajp_anton - Thursday, February 21, 2019 - link
You also seemed to miss the point.This kind of phone is not inherently expensive, it's just that the initial RnD and the "being first" factor that make this particular phone expensive. I'm really excited about this launch, because this marks the first step towards *affordable* foldable phones. It may take a while still, but now at least they are a reality.
imaheadcase - Thursday, February 21, 2019 - link
You do know foldable phones are not something people are asking for right?FullmetalTitan - Thursday, February 21, 2019 - link
I would much rather spend $2k on a demo of nascent smartphone technology than hear about one more celeb that spent $25k on a gold plated Apple WatchAlistair - Wednesday, February 20, 2019 - link
if i made 6 figures, i'd buy it... i only get 1 and a half months rent here in vancouver ;)eva02langley - Wednesday, February 20, 2019 - link
Glad I don't live there. My mortgage barely come to 1K$ a month. I could not live in Vancouver >:/olderkid - Wednesday, February 20, 2019 - link
Where are you living where a 'nice' apartment is $1000 or less? If you are making 6 figures and your rent is less than $1,000, you could buy several of these and never feel the effect. $300/month for groceries means you eat like a college student. I suppose you could eat OK at $75/week, but you're certainty not eating out at all. If you are making 6 figures and driving a $3,000 car, you have probably made bad choices to make the imperative.I think you just have a problem paying for cutting edge technology. That's fine - just don't make it about being unaffordable for someone making 6 figures.
Alexvrb - Wednesday, February 20, 2019 - link
I don't think eva was trying to imply those are THEIR costs, and I'm sure they could afford one with that kind of income. There's some exaggeration but the phone IS outrageously priced. It's not just that it's cutting edge, the bigger issue is that it has no direct competition at present. In a year we'll probably have something like that in the ~1K or so ballpark.eva02langley - Wednesday, February 20, 2019 - link
I am having a 3 bedroom home near Ottawa. House cost 300K$, however, taxes are 45% of my salary. But yeah, I am an electrical engineer and I make a good salary, but that doesn't mean because I can throw money out of the window without any worry that I am doing so.I paid my car cash brand new, I am just that kind of person, but even if I am pushing for technology, I am not agreeing with this because it is nothing more than a gadget that bring NOTHING new in terms of features at an indecent price. You can have a tablet doing the same damn thing at a third of the cost... it just doesn't fold in your pocket.
fmcjw - Wednesday, February 20, 2019 - link
Thanks for the range of colorful comparisons. I often see iPhone users snapping magazine content at the bookstore, or cramming into public buses with the rest of the Android flocks. It'll be amusing to see this device stuck in a line at a dollar store, and whatever person that comes attached with it.Solandri - Thursday, February 21, 2019 - link
Other people's spending decisions almost never make sense to yourself. Another way to think of this is that a $3000 device used for 3 years is $1000/yr or $83.33/mo. If you buy a $4 cup of coffee at Starbucks every morning on the way to work, that works out to about $87/mo.eddman - Thursday, February 21, 2019 - link
Well, the upside is that it's a niche model and fortunately not replacing the S line, so it can be ignored.This feels like a test phone to me.
dontlistentome - Thursday, February 21, 2019 - link
I suspect you're too young to rememeber how much the Motorola Aura cost at first, likewise some of the Nokia high end models were well into 4 figures.Peskarik - Thursday, February 21, 2019 - link
3000 is equal to 3-4 months rent in a nice apartment? 10 MONTHS of grocery? In Canada? Really?Sancus - Thursday, February 21, 2019 - link
If you care about the price of this phone, it isn't for you. Like Samsung said, they're looking at building truly luxury devices. This is a first prototype for early adopters and rich people who want to show off. It isn't for someone who looks at price tags first.jrs77 - Wednesday, February 20, 2019 - link
Shure it's new tech and all that, but c'mon... $2000 for a phone?johnnycanadian - Wednesday, February 20, 2019 - link
Yup, but I also remember paying $1700 for my first plasma TV (it was even 480p!). It was most certainly considered a luxury item.Give it a year and a folding phone will no longer be a "luxury" item but I'd guess that the price would be competitive with whatever Apple is flogging.
MrSpadge - Wednesday, February 20, 2019 - link
I wonder what Apple is going to bring next year. Pretty sure they can't stand NOT having the most expensive phone on the planet (ignoring the jewelry covered ones).Korguz - Wednesday, February 20, 2019 - link
if Apple brought this out.. it would easily be $3000 US or more..jordanclock - Wednesday, February 20, 2019 - link
Halo product's gonna halo.The Garden Variety - Wednesday, February 20, 2019 - link
Honest question: Is $2000 somehow a lot? Between the unbelievable bitching about Apple's $1500 or whatever phones and now everything losing their shit over a $2000 phone, I'm starting to wonder if literally every single one of you is poor, and shouldn't own a smart phone to begin with.Hate to break it to you, but there's a pretty huge group of us out here for whom $2000, while not Jeff Bezos-level pocket change, is hardly what I'd call "expensive." It's just not a lot of money to me or to most of the people in my circle. If it is for you, well, there's a ton of other more basic phones for less money. Enjoy. The rest of us have no such restrictions.
jrs77 - Wednesday, February 20, 2019 - link
Given that the median income in Germany is 1650 Euro per month and $30000 per year for the US there's atleast 60% of the population in these two countries, who'll never be able to pay that for a phone. And that's the situation in basically all western countries.Alistair - Wednesday, February 20, 2019 - link
Statistics are never that simple, the median U.S. income for a full time employed american male over 25 is over $60,000. Most Canadians have no idea how far behind we are becoming (Canada used to have higher income than the U.S. when I was born). The low number of $30,000 includes people who are young or barely working. It kind of understates things by half.Alistair - Wednesday, February 20, 2019 - link
Median for a man or woman with a university degree is almost $80,000. The target market for this kind of thing. Still too expensive for me with my weak CAD ;)psychobriggsy - Thursday, February 21, 2019 - link
C'mon, this phone is aimed at the top 10% of earners, whether they be young tech geeks in good jobs with few other outgoings, or older businesspeople looking for a show-off gadget.Nobody on $30k a year is going to seriously consider a $2k phone, although they might consider a $400 mid-range Huawei/Honor or Galaxy A series device.
IMO this doesn't gain a lot of screen area for the gain in fatness. It'd be a reasonable eBook Reader, but I think I'd rather pay half of the amount for a far slimmer device with a thinner display.
Inteli - Wednesday, February 20, 2019 - link
I think it's less, "I can't afford it," and more "It's too expensive because it's more than I'm used to spending on a flagship phone."I'm sure plenty of people could afford it, but think it's too expensive because they spent less than half the asking price of this on their last flagship smartphone.
eva02langley - Wednesday, February 20, 2019 - link
I will buy stock over expensive gadget anyday.I could buy over 100 of those cash.... that doesn't mean I would or I should.
You people holding this attitude are ending eating your socks because you have no idea of the real value of money.
2000$ is enough to support a whole family for a year in some countries.
Korguz - Wednesday, February 20, 2019 - link
hate to break it to you The Garden Variety it IS expensive to those who have better things to spend their money on. and unlike you we have more brains then money, or just want bragging rights.... the rest of us.. dont need to, or want to brag about spending money like you seem to have no issues doing, if you spend money like that.. good for you.. it wont impress me at all..brakdoo - Wednesday, February 20, 2019 - link
5g? Dimensions?Ryan Smith - Thursday, February 21, 2019 - link
The dimensions are not being disclosed at this time.III-V - Wednesday, February 20, 2019 - link
"This story is breaking news, we'll update as the event... UNFOLDS!"You guys have too much fun sometimes :D
jjj - Wednesday, February 20, 2019 - link
I am shocked by how much it syx, this kind of product makes me want to find a better planet.And the name is perfect, Samsung just gives up on product design.
When folded has a 4.58 inch small display and big bezels - also has 1 selfie cam.
It's also thick and because it is thick they had to reduce the width so you can hold it. It's a brick with a tiny display for a terrible phone.
Reduced width results in a smaller display for the large one.
And the big screen has a large cutout for 2 selfie cams and whatever other sensors. This cutout is so so stupid, they had no need for it, not even if they wanted a cam (that they do not need), they could have used a popup and with that, they could have removed the one for the small screen and save a buck.
The big display can't fold on itself flat, the curvature needs a bit of a radius so when folded, the device is thicker on one side and thinner on the other.
And ofc the big screen folds the wrong way, likely because they could nto figure out a cover material that can take the abuse.
And priced at 1980$
This thing is an avalanche of stupid compromises. How in the name of everything, do these people keep their jobs? They are worst than zero at their jobs.
Foldables are a gigantic opportunity and they c... all over it
Do it right and sell tens of millions per quarter not 15k. This is not their iPhone moment, they will never have and iPhone moment if this disaster is shown in public. You can't make a good product ,ever, if you think that this one is not insane.
porcupineLTD - Wednesday, February 20, 2019 - link
I agree with you except for one thing... I think it will sell quite well, people only care about gimmicks, that is why we have notched-underdisplay-popup-headphonejackless-pentalens-faceID-reversewireless-animoji phones selling well and last year's S9 (witch had the best design that was much better than a retarded hole in the screen) sold terribly because it had a little bezel and no gimmick.HardwareDufus - Thursday, February 21, 2019 - link
This is ver 1.0 of a commercial available foldable phone that becomes a very useable 4x3 tablet. (The 4.58 screen was perfect for the iPhone. ;p I jest.)I think for an initial product lunch in kind of a new category.....it's quite a good attempt. ver 2.0 will be better
mkozakewich - Wednesday, February 20, 2019 - link
It's hardly the world's first folding phone. The ZTE Axon M:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xX31xYRl-II
The Galaxy Fold seems to be the world's first phone with a folding OLED display, but we've had a bunch of other two-screen clamshells before.
hlm - Wednesday, February 20, 2019 - link
Royole had an AMOLED foldable phone at CES 2019 https://www.royole.com/flexpaiAs Engadget wrote about the Royole Flexpai, "Yes, this is a real product that you can buy right now. Yes, this basically unknown company beat Samsung to market with a foldable smartphone. And yes, it actually works."
But what US phone carrier sells it?
Tchamber - Wednesday, February 20, 2019 - link
If you recall, Chinese businessmen stole Samsung's flexible screen tech. This company is out of China... Do the math.hlm - Thursday, February 21, 2019 - link
Do what math? We're just stating the fact that Samsung is not first with a foldable phone. Do you have an article I can read about the businessmen that stole this technology from Samsung? I'd like to read it.PVG - Wednesday, February 20, 2019 - link
Why the hell did they put a giant notch in the interior screen???eva02langley - Wednesday, February 20, 2019 - link
More expensive than a 2080 TI!... or a high end laptop...And after that, Samsung or Apple are complaining for 7.50$ for Qualcomm patent fees per phone... make me laugh...
Quantumz0d - Sunday, February 24, 2019 - link
Great points, agreed. Not only that, these are basically obsolete once the battery dies out, while the GPU lives on until it dies.Exactly, Qualcomm even has that Ultrasonic tech which Samsung uses in their prized S10 lineup Samsung didn't even care to mention them, unfortunate how the innovator is now looked at due tot eh stupid gouging Apple trash.
FunBunny2 - Wednesday, February 20, 2019 - link
I predicted, based on published patent info, a couple of years ago that a folding phone was in the near future. Samsung, alas, has done it wrong. folks don't have much need for another phablet, which is all this is.the gold mine is a 'standard' smartphone that flips like the old phlipphone. now, that would be very much more useful. and could be priced in line, more or less, with existing ones. stuff it in your pocket and all that.
as to whom will plunk down so much for a device? not so many, even if they can spare the moolah. it's just another phablet. the problem for capitalists: you only make money if your running your machines 24/7/365 spitting, and selling, product. fancy Swiss watches have a teeny market share and profit. Apple is failing, and this won't help Samsung.
trivik12 - Wednesday, February 20, 2019 - link
I am ok with the price. This is 1st gen product for super rich. Question is will it go down in price in next few iterations. I hope so. I would be in at half this price.Rictorhell - Thursday, February 21, 2019 - link
For all of that money, so far, no sign of even a micro SD card reader for expandability. If they want to charge an arm and a leg at least they can help slow down the inevitable obsolescence of the device by including basic necessities that at least some of their customers would appreciate and find useful.HardwareDufus - Wednesday, February 20, 2019 - link
meanwhile back in Redmond.andromeda = crickets
serendip - Wednesday, February 20, 2019 - link
Like a Nokia Communicator with dual interior screens. Those were chunky old things that were proper tiny computers, back when mobile Internet didn't exist.KPOM - Wednesday, February 20, 2019 - link
Apple and Samsung have a symbiotic relationship. Samsung experiments. Apple figures out what works. Samsung copies the finished product. That’s totally on display here. We all know that foldable displays are the future. Samsung puts out a ridiculous device for $2000 today. Some features will stick. Apple will release a version that works, and the industry will follow. Everyone wins. Samsung makes more money selling displays to Apple than selling its own phones. The Galaxy Fold is basically a memo to Apple as to what is possible.boozed - Thursday, February 21, 2019 - link
"This is something I could get some use out of""...they want HOW MUCH?"
GreenReaper - Thursday, February 21, 2019 - link
"the its first ever folding smartphone" - you put in an "its" but forgot to take out the "the"~Gunbuster - Thursday, February 21, 2019 - link
Missed the start of the livestream yesterday. Did they address how the $2000 folding plastic screen is going to hold up to folding/pockets/every day use? (I'm sure they didn't because it wont)lightningz71 - Thursday, February 21, 2019 - link
This is an amazing device, to be sure, but, I'm not so sure about the absolute value proposition for all but the most die hard of road warriors. Lets compare this to the following:Purchase a mid-tier modern smartphone. That'll run you around $350 for something that can do almost anything well. Then, buy a top of the line Android tablet without integrated cellular modem. That'll run you, save for a couple of the exotics, around $350 as well. For $700, you've got something that tablets well, something that phones well, and, with just your personal hotspot on your phone, you can have the tablet be fully functional.
Do you have to carry around an extra device? Yes. How often, when you are out and about without a bag of some sort, would you want to use a tablet? I suggest that that is a very rare case. I just don't see this as being anything more than a vanity product at north of $1000. At less than that price, you start to get value as you have something with top of the line performance, and the functionality of two different devices that would exceed its price at that performance level.
Is it amazing that they can do this? Certainly! Are there going to be people buying it that have more money than sense? Of course. I just don't see the point at that price.
piroroadkill - Friday, February 22, 2019 - link
How is it the first? Wasn't there a lot of news around the Royole Flexpai being the first?hlm - Friday, February 22, 2019 - link
Yes, the article title is misleading. It is the first for Samsung, but NOT the "first folding display smartphone".piroroadkill - Friday, February 22, 2019 - link
Rectangular pixels? Otherwise I'm not seeing how the aspect ratio is correct.porcusRex - Saturday, February 23, 2019 - link
samsung has jumped the shark. its a double wide smartphone. for 2000 you get a double wide. i dont mind paying extra for new useful things. a doublewide smartphone doesnt provide me with much use beyond a samsung 9, 9+ or an iphone.use the foldable tech and give me a smartphone that folds up to half its size. thats something i would be interested in.
badbanana - Sunday, February 24, 2019 - link
only one thing that comes to mind, and this could kick the doldrums in the industry.for those who have seen "WestWorld", notice their foldable tablet? ;-)