Apple rivals Samsung & LG aiming for foldable phones by end of 2017
Two of Apple's competitors in the smartphone space -- Samsung and LG -- may launch their first foldable phones towards the end of the year, potentially dampening the "wow" factor of a redesigned "iPhone 8."
Samsung is likely to announce a phone in the third quarter, sources told the English-language Korea Herald. The planned device will supposedly unfold into a 7-inch tablet, something so far unseen in the commercial space.
The company is said to have finished development of "fold-in" phones around August, but realized a "fold-out" design would be more convenient, since fold-in requires a person to unfold a phone before it can be used. The switchover was easy, one source said.
Although the product is technically complete, several sources said Samsung is holding off on a decision about releasing it this year because of potential profit and marketability issues. That decision should be made, however, after an executive shuffle of Samsung Electronics is carried out in February or March -- it was originally due in December, but the company's alleged involvement in a political scandal with Korean President Park Geun-hye led to a delay.
Only about 100,000 units of the Samsung phone would be available in the third quarter, one of the sources commented.
LG is also starting with 100,000 units, but in the fourth quarter of the year, another source said. Despite plans to ship later, LG is claimed to have more advanced technology than Samsung, with a two- to three-year head start on development.
The Herald suggested that LG could offer the technology to outside companies like Apple or Huawei. If so, Apple is unlikely to have any foldable products out this year -- this fall's "iPhone 8" is expected to have a 5.1- or 5.2-inch curved OLED display, rather than a foldable one.
Rumors have also pointed to it having a "glass sandwich" design with a stainless steel chassis in the middle, something inconsistent with foldable technology. Apple might be forced to wait until 2018, if not later.
Samsung is likely to announce a phone in the third quarter, sources told the English-language Korea Herald. The planned device will supposedly unfold into a 7-inch tablet, something so far unseen in the commercial space.
The company is said to have finished development of "fold-in" phones around August, but realized a "fold-out" design would be more convenient, since fold-in requires a person to unfold a phone before it can be used. The switchover was easy, one source said.
Although the product is technically complete, several sources said Samsung is holding off on a decision about releasing it this year because of potential profit and marketability issues. That decision should be made, however, after an executive shuffle of Samsung Electronics is carried out in February or March -- it was originally due in December, but the company's alleged involvement in a political scandal with Korean President Park Geun-hye led to a delay.
Only about 100,000 units of the Samsung phone would be available in the third quarter, one of the sources commented.
LG is also starting with 100,000 units, but in the fourth quarter of the year, another source said. Despite plans to ship later, LG is claimed to have more advanced technology than Samsung, with a two- to three-year head start on development.
The Herald suggested that LG could offer the technology to outside companies like Apple or Huawei. If so, Apple is unlikely to have any foldable products out this year -- this fall's "iPhone 8" is expected to have a 5.1- or 5.2-inch curved OLED display, rather than a foldable one.
Rumors have also pointed to it having a "glass sandwich" design with a stainless steel chassis in the middle, something inconsistent with foldable technology. Apple might be forced to wait until 2018, if not later.
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“Two of Apple's competitors in the smartphone space -- Samsung and LG -- may launch their first foldable phones towards the end of the year, potentially dampening the "wow" factor of a redesigned "iPhone 8."
Perfect example of click bait and totally unnecessary snark.
Meanwhile, we have the Watch. This is the first time an Watch entered our family eco system, I bought my wife a Mk 2 for Christmas. She is a busy Realtor and has found she rarely uses her iPhone now, it stays in her hand bag for the most part unless she needs a camera, she is using her 'Dick Tracey' wrist phone and wrist mounted Siri assistant all the time now (or her hands free in the car). I have to confess being a Mac guy rather than an iOS one (Netflix on my iPad and an iPhone for the odd phone call is about it for iOS for me) I had no idea they could even act as a wrist phone! So if I offered her a folding smart phone she'd laugh at me.
As an aside, My wife has found that others are amazed she can use her Watch the way she does and they confess they had no idea it could be a wrist phone either. I bet she's has been responsible for a dozen Watch sales in the last few weeks.
Yup, the first time my Apple Watch rang I nearly off my chair.
Yes, that's the thing. The screen now has a weak point, which will get weaker the more you use it. Maybe they should go with those scroll phones like on Earth:Final Conflict.
I'd hate for something that's sharp break near my femoral artery.
But another problem is the covering glass. How will the capacitive reception work on something like plastic? Can be "glass" folded and unfolded? Yes, it can, but it is extremely expensive and you can only bend it, not "fold", not in that small form factor.
Will the bend have weaker "glass/plastic" where you will see scratches after time, more so when this "fold" is wrapping one side of the phone with the display? Will the plastic be waterproof? That is a problem right now, but can be maybe solved. It probably wont be as hard as glass, therefore you can scratch it every time you put it in your pocket.
What happens when you drop it on this "fold"? Plastic is more flexible than glass, so it can better handle impacts, but how will it affect the pixels, or the capacitive layer?
Clearly, Samsung (and others) has a BENDABLE! (not FOLDABLE!) display, but doesn't know what to do with it. To build around it a fully working phone without these compromises is another story and much more difficult. When it happens, it will be just a PR prototype, I don't see any commercially viable product in the near future of lets say 2-3 years. And thats very optimistic.