For the past four years, Samsung fans looking for a foldable phone had two options: the nearly tablet-size Galaxy Z Fold and the clamshell-style Galaxy Z Flip. That’s still true in 2024, but Samsung’s Galaxy Z Fold may expand into its own product line, perhaps pushing devices that combine the experience of a phone and tablet closer to mainstream audiences.
Samsung is reportedly developing a new tri-folding device to compete with Huawei, according to the leaker known as Revegnus (@TechReve) on X. That follows a report from Korean news outlet ETNews suggesting that Samsung will release a cheaper version of the Galaxy Z Fold alongside the standard model this year.Â
Read more: Best Foldables for 2024
Taken together, both of these reports hint the Galaxy Z Fold may evolve into its own family of devices like the Samsung Galaxy S series. Doing so would suggest Samsung is taking greater effort in establishing foldable phones as the new norm, with the Z Fold being a major part of that plan. More importantly, launching new book-shaped phones in different price ranges could make foldables more appealing and more accessible to wider audience.Â
As one of the world’s largest smartphone makers, Samsung has a lot of influence over where mobile devices are headed. But it’s also facing more competition than ever before in both the foldable phone market and the broader smartphone space.Â
Apple surpassed Samsung as the leader in global smartphone shipments, signaling the first time since 2010 that the Korean tech giant hasn’t held the number one spot, according to the International Data Corporation. Google and OnePlus both launched their first foldable phones in 2023, meaning the Galaxy Z Fold isn’t one of the only phone-tablet hybrids around anymore.Â
China now holds the largest slice of the foldable phone market thanks to the rising popularity of models from Huawei and Vivo, not Samsung, according to Counterpoint Research.Â
Expanding the Galaxy Z Fold into a family of devices could…
Read the full article here