The future of foldable phones is far from clear…
Despite the fact that foldable phones brought the biggest innovation in smartphone design since 2007, reports claim the Galaxy Z Flip 4 and Galaxy Z Fold 4 series are selling less compared to their predecessors, the Galaxy Z Flip 3 and Galaxy Z Fold 3…Although it’s easy to blame the disappointing figures on the global economic crisis, the truth might be that people’s interest in the (still) novel form-factor hasn’t exactly been captured by the companies that believe in this design – Samsung, Huawei, Motorola, Oppo, and Vivo. But the leader in the push to make folding phones mainstream isn’t giving up just yet!
Leaked renders now show the more popular member of Samsung’s foldable family, the Galaxy Z Flip, is taking a big step towards justifying its existence. However, despite the quite literally massive upgrade coming to the Galaxy Z Flip 5, there are two remaining questions Samsung would have to answer in July, when the Galaxy Z Flip 5 and Galaxy Z Fold 5 are expected to become official.
About 2-3 months before the launch of Samsung’s next folding duo, here’s what could make/break the more popular Galaxy Z Flip! Spoiler: I’m a fan of what Samsung is doing but the company should go all the way.
Galaxy Z Flip 5 could be the the foldable phone to save foldable phones and buy them some valuable time; the new outer display is a potential game-changer (if Samsung gets it right)
For those of you who keep an eye on the leaks and rumors, you might already know that Motorola is also preparing a clamshell folding phone with a much larger outer display, the Razr 40 Ultra. Motorola managed to wrap the screen around the entire camera module of the new Razr. However, despite looking quite visually striking, it appears like the Razr’s usable display area might be smaller compared to the Galaxy Z Flip 5. In other words, both seem to be making great use of space and design.
As an iPhone 13 mini user, I’m someone who truly appreciates a display that allows operating my phone with one hand. That’s why I love the idea of a folding phone with a big internal screen and a big enough outer display for quick and easy one-handed operation. Samsung has already won me over. So far.That being said, there’s absolutely no room for negotiations when it comes to one aspect of that big and beautiful outer screen of the Galaxy Z Flip 5. If Samsung wants to convert users like me, the smaller screen must be fully functional to justify its size and existence. There, I said it.
The entire reason the one-handed mode on Android and Reachability on iPhone exist is to make smartphones with large displays usable with one hand, and Samsung, if you can have a fully-fledged one-handed mode in a “normal” phone like the Galaxy S23 Ultra, there’s no reason you won’t turn this software trick into an actual small display, which would/should be the actual selling-point of the new Flip 5.
If it wants to make the best folding phone on the market, Samsung should take notes from Vivo and do what the Chinese phone-maker did with the outer display of the Vivo X Flip. This one allows you to use all major apps that you’d normally use on the larger inner display, including swiping through your app drawer like you normally would. Of course, this requires the appropriate software adaptation for those apps so users can make the most out of the small screen. You can’t simply run a minimized version of YouTube or your browser on the smaller outer screen.
Galaxy Z Flip 5: $900 starting price would make Samsung’s most popular folding phone even more appealing – but is the company ready to lose a little bit of money to win over more users?
The new outer display of the Galaxy Z Flip 5 would go nicely with a new, lower price. But is Samsung willing to lose some to gain some?
Again, I almost couldn’t be happier with the new outer display of the Galaxy Z Flip 5 (actually, I would be if Samsung makes this one fully functional), but that’s not the only thing I’d ask from Samsung.
As of now, we haven’t heard anything about the price of the Galaxy Z Flip 5, but wouldn’t the cherry on top be if Samsung was to further lower the price of the $1,000 foldable to (let’s say) $900! I’m saying it’s time to start bringing the price of folding phones further down. No?
Compared to (perhaps) the main rival of the Galaxy Z Flip 5, the Oppo Find N2 Flip, the Chinese device (which is available on the global market), costs £850 for a 256GB unit. Right now, Samsung’s Flip 4 starts at $1,000/£1,000 for the base 128GB variant, which seems a bit stingy from Samsung. Motorola is also expected to bring a Lite version of the new folding Razr to the market, which is expected to start at less than $1,000. Doesn’t it look like it’s time for a cheaper Galaxy Z Flip, Samsung?
Of course, what the South Korean giant could do instead is to simply get rid of the 128GB variant of the Galaxy Z Flip 5 and start the expensive flagship at 256GB of storage, which would be “something rather than nothing”. However, given that both Oppo and Motorola are going to be undercutting Samsung’s Flip in prices, I maintain the idea that the new Galaxy Z Flip 5 should become a little bit cheaper.
You see, at this point what folding phones can do and how they are priced is about choice/strategy for Samsung, and it might be time to take some risks. Take Google, which (by all looks) sells Pixel phones at a loss in order to get people on board with the idea of using a Pixel phone instead of a Galaxy/iPhone. If you think about it, Samsung isn’t in a very different situation when it comes to its foldable lineup, which (just like the Pixel) has a lot of convincing to do.
A cheaper Galaxy Z Flip 5 should more easily attract people who would otherwise buy a Galaxy S23
- Galaxy S23: $800
- Galaxy Z Flip 5: $900 instead of $1,000
- Galaxy S23+: $1,000
- Galaxy S23 Ultra: $1,200
Of course, Samsung also sells “normal” phones… Looking at the company’s broad portfolio of devices, pricing like the one above would put the Galaxy Z Flip 5 in a rather favorable position compared to vanilla Galaxy S23 and the more capable Galaxy S23+.Paying only $100 extra to get a foldable should appeal to more people who’d otherwise jump on the entry-level S23, while paying $100 less to get an even larger display than the one on the Galaxy S23+ should appeal to those who’d otherwise pick the normal Plus model.
So, it’s totally up to Samsung here. Does the company leave $100 (per unit) on the table, going for more aggressive pricing to move more phones and convert more “normal-phone users”, or does it stick to the premium price tag of $1,000, which also happens to get you a Galaxy S23+, iPhone 14 Pro, or even a Galaxy S23 Ultra on sale? I know what I would’ve done if my goal was to sell more foldable phones. But then again, what do I know about business!
State of the Foldable: Unfortunately for Samsung, the future of folding phones isn’t in the company’s hands (only); Apple’s seal of approval doesn’t look to be coming anytime soon
How long is the foldable experiment going to last?
So, that’s where I stand when it comes to the new Galaxy Z Flip 5, given all the leaks and rumors we’ve seen so far:
- I’d like the new outer display to be fully functional – Samsung should mirror the functionality of the primary display to make the Galaxy Z Flip 5 usable with one hand
- A new, lower price of $900 or at least $256GB of storage for the base model Galaxy Z Flip 5 should make the most popular foldable even more… popular (also, 128GB storage should soon be a thing of the past anyway, Samsung, Apple, Google)
- No display crease and no gap when the Galaxy Z Flip 5 is closed shut is a design upgrade that’d make the new Flip near perfect; early leaks and rumors are telling us this is a possibility, but given that Samsung hasn’t been able to achieve this in the past four years, I’ll believe it when I see it
4 years after the first Galaxy Fold, it turns out making foldable phones mainstream is a harder task than expected – is Samsung running out of time?
The new Galaxy Z Flip 5 aside, we’re on the 5th iteration of the Galaxy Fold/Flip, which is a good time for a quick reality check, and here’s an interesting angle…
Compared to the 5th generation of iPad/tablets, Apple Watch/smartwatches, and AirPods/earbuds, folding phones are not even close to being as popular or talked about. Seeing how things are developing, it’s hard not to ask myself: “Is Samsung running out of time when it comes to making foldables mainstream?”With declining sales compared to previous generations of Galaxy foldables, and the lack of a folding iPhone that would “approve of the concept of foldable phones”, I wouldn’t be surprised if Samsung gives the foldable phone thing a couple more attempts before starting to think about moving on to something else entirely. What helps is that Oppo has now entered the global market with the Oppo Find N2 Flip and Oppo Find N2, while Google is well on the way to revealing the first Google Pixel Fold on May 10. What doesn’t help is that Apple is still very much reluctant to enter the foldable market.
Samsung has proven it isn’t exactly afraid to cut off certain products if they don’t fit the bill (Galaxy Note, Galaxy FE). So, in a way, every new Galaxy folding phone is the most important one for Samsung (and foldables as a whole), as well as potentially the last one.
