14 DAY TRIAL // Samsung is known to be working hard on a new iteration in the Galaxy S series, while the company hasn’t given up on plans to release a successor to the Galaxy Note 7. However, more and more information surfaces regarding another Samsung phone.
We’ve been talking about Samsung’s Project Valley for quite some time now and rumors have pointed to a release possibly this year. A few days ago, we reported that Samsung’s foldable phones might carry the monikers Galaxy X1 and Galaxy X1 Plus.
A new report by The Investor shows that the foldable phone could actually arrive in Q3 this year.
“Samsung is expected to roll out more than 100,000 units of fold-out devices in the third quarter,” a source told The Korea Herald. The report mentions that the phone’s panels could face outward upon folding and that it results in an 18-centimeter or 7-inch tablet when unfolded.
The Q3 release for Samsung’s foldable phone is subject to change
It appears that Samsung has already completed the development of fold-in phones with screens tucked inside when folded. Development of a fold-out concept began in August last year, but Samsung realized that consumers might find this design inconvenient. “Since the company already secured fold-in phone technology, it was not a big challenge to shift into the fold-out phones,” an unnamed source quoted in the report said.
Samsung hasn’t made a final decision regarding the release date for the foldable smartphone because of marketability and profitability issues. Apparently, the decision will be made after the company completes the personnel reshuffle operation for its IT and mobile communications unit.
But Samsung isn’t the only company that might announce a foldable phone this year. LG is expected to create more than 100,000 foldable devices in Q4 and the company has already started developing the fold-out technology two to three years ago. The source states that LG has more advanced technology than Samsung. However, LG isn’t planning to implement the technology in its own phones, it will most likely collaborate with Apple and Huawei.