Samsung exec says Galaxy Fold finally 'ready to hit the market'
Originally intended to launch in April, the Galaxy Fold is finally on the verge of reaching the public, a Samsung executive said.
"Most of the display problems have been ironed out, and the Galaxy Fold is ready to hit the market," Samsung Display Vice President Kim Seong-cheol claimed at an event in Seoul earlier this week, according to The Korea Herald. The company has yet to announce a formal release date, despite having long promised news "in the coming weeks."
The Fold is not only Samsung's first commercial foldable device but the first from a major smartphone vendor. While usable with a 4.6-inch exterior display, it unfolds to reveal a 7.3-inch screen, not much smaller than the 7.9-inch iPad mini -- albeit at a cost of $1,980.
The company was forced to scrap the April premiere after reviewers began breaking the interior display with little effort, usually along the hinge. Since then it has been working to improve durability, including sealing against debris.
Some reviewers accidentally peeled away a critical layer, thinking it was a screen protector. Shipping Folds should have clear warnings.
Apple has been exploring the concept of its own foldable devices, but there's no sign of them shipping anytime soon.
"Most of the display problems have been ironed out, and the Galaxy Fold is ready to hit the market," Samsung Display Vice President Kim Seong-cheol claimed at an event in Seoul earlier this week, according to The Korea Herald. The company has yet to announce a formal release date, despite having long promised news "in the coming weeks."
The Fold is not only Samsung's first commercial foldable device but the first from a major smartphone vendor. While usable with a 4.6-inch exterior display, it unfolds to reveal a 7.3-inch screen, not much smaller than the 7.9-inch iPad mini -- albeit at a cost of $1,980.
The company was forced to scrap the April premiere after reviewers began breaking the interior display with little effort, usually along the hinge. Since then it has been working to improve durability, including sealing against debris.
Some reviewers accidentally peeled away a critical layer, thinking it was a screen protector. Shipping Folds should have clear warnings.
Apple has been exploring the concept of its own foldable devices, but there's no sign of them shipping anytime soon.
Comments
Samsung didn't ship any and 100% didn't break. Also, if they are near ready to launch it is probably that the fixes were minor. Probably important but minor.
We'll now have to wait for the new official date.
Still a PR disaster but the phone itself might not be as much of a hardware failure as some thought. When it reaches users, we'll know soon enough.
I prefer to let the device stand or fall on its own merits.
Maybe I'm old fashioned.
Meanwhile "Apple failed" for not releasing AirPower.
Try again.
He's the typical iKnockoff Knight who claims everything Apple does is wrong and everything the knockoffs do is justified.
It already fell on its own merits.
He doesn't need to use one to know that and you haven't used one to deny it. I don't have to use a grenade or Note 7 to know that both explode.
That part is normal for Samsung. Sammy outdid themselves by attempting to release a product that breaks within a month hoping no one would notice. Had it not been for negative reviews on review units, Sammy would have released millions to the public.
Of course iKnockoff Knights will claim Samsung "cares" about their customers proven by their "bold" move to delay the release to fix problems. Sound familiar? Happened with the exploding Note 7. #BombGate. Sammy didn't give a sh** and even told employees to ignore user complaints until the media got involved. iKnockoff Knights then claimed Samsung "cared" about customers. History repeats.
Sucks that Huawei decided to wait to release their Mate X when they could have pimped Samsung's return to market, given your extensive defense of their "delay".
For the record, the Galaxy Fold was so poorly designed, that people thought they were peeling off a protective cover...and the mechanicals of the hinges were failing virtually overnight.
But true that these were "evaluation" units, not units shipped to customers, as if there is a difference in production.
I don't think AirPower is a good comparison, and I got the impression more that people were disappointed about AirPower, not that Apple was getting vilified for it. Regardless, unlike Samsung, I think they made the right decision. They couldn't make a quality product and so they simply chose not to release it rather than release an inferior one.
Yeah - for a $2000 phone, the damn well better have fixed all of the problems. especially after the initial release fiasco. As mentioned above, a 1% failure rate is still way too high.
Doesn't change the fact they didn't work.
The only thing "free" were the reviewers as the quality control department. /s
I don't think we need to repeat the "had Apple" phrase. I mean AirPower got sh** on before it even hit the review stage. Read my reply #13. Samsung will be heralded as some hero for delaying this crap product even when their intentions were clear, to yell "first!".