the company said in a statement. “Not only
we improved the Galaxy Fold’s design and
construction, but also took the time to rethink
the entire consumer journey.”
The nearly $2,000 phone will launch on Sept. 6
in South Korea, and Sept. 18 in France, Germany
and Britain, with versions for next generation 5G
networks available in the latter two countries.
Other markets including the U.S. and Singapore
will follow, but the company did not specify dates.
The Galaxy Fold’s original April launch was
pushed back after reports that some reviewers’
phones were breaking.
Journalists who had received the phones
said the folding screen started flickering and
turning black before fizzling out. Two reviewers
mistakenly removed an outer plastic layer from
the screen that was supposed to stay on.
Samsung has said the composite polymer
screen can be opened and closed 200,000 times,
or 100 times a day for five years.
The delay was a setback for Samsung and for the
broader smartphone market, which had been
looking to folding screens as one way to catalyze
innovation in the industry.
China’s Huawei also announced its own folding
screen phone, the Mate X, at around the same
time, but it hasn’t yet set a launch date.
The Galaxy Fold is slightly longer and narrower
than a standard smartphone when folded, but
opens up to the size of a small tablet, with the
internal screen display bisected by a crease. It
also has another screen on the outside so it can
be used when closed.
Samsung’s 2016 launch of its Galaxy Note 7
was also troubled, with the company forced to
eventually recall the phone because its batteries
were catching on fire.
c. jardin
(C. Jardin)
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