New reports from Korea suggest that Samsung might actually be working on a new phone with a foldable display. The phone is likely to be unveiled in the third quarter of this year, and the company may roll out more than 1,00,000 units of the said phone. This assumed device will have a 7-inch fold out display. This would mean that when fully opened the phone will double up as a 7-inch tablet.
Samsung has been working on foldable displays for quite some time now, and the company already showcased the foldable tab concept back in 2014. However, that was a fold-in design and the new report suggests that Samsung started working on a fold-out design in August 2016, in which the screen folds outwards.
According to the report Samsung is nearing completion of this project, but still looking into marketability and profitability issues. Reportedly, the mobile division of the company is also going under a reshuffle and the decision to launch the foldable phone will be taken once that is done. Although, it is still a possibility that Samsung may delay it if the technology is not ready for consumers in time.
Another Korean phone maker, LG is also working on foldable phones and the company has already spent two to three years in development. The report claims that currently LG has more advanced technology than Samsung and the company might launch foldable devices by the end of this year.
After the Note 7 debacle, Samsung is gearing up to launch some new products this year, which may overshadow that. We expect the company to announced new S8 in April with the latest specifications and an all new display which will cover 90% of the phone.