Samsung’s name is synonymous with folding smartphones, but has its success been too great, and has it scared the competition off of making alternatives?
Quick quiz question for you: Name one other widely available folding smartphone that’s not made by Samsung? You probably can’t, and that’s because outside of China, Samsung has already beaten every other manufacturer into submission, and won the folding smartphone race with barely any challenge at all. Except, is this a win to be celebrated by anyone, Samsung included? Possibly not. Domination on this scale may not push many to take on Samsung, and that’s not good news for folding smartphones in general. Samsung has put eight years into the development of folding smartphone technology so far, and after using the Galaxy Z Fold 3 and Z Flip 3, it’s easy to see how far it has come since the release of the original Galaxy Fold, and just how much catching up potential opponents have to do. Advancements in durability, screen technology, and software make Samsung’s new phones usable every day, long before most others have even left the start line. Each fulfills Samsung’s promise of adding mass-market appeal to its folding smartphone range, and even the prices aren’t as horrific as before. You can buy the Z Flip 3 for around the same as a OnePlus 9 Pro or a Samsung Galaxy S21+, and while the Z Fold 3 is still very expensive, it’s $200 less than the first Fold, yet technologically superior in every way. If you want a folding smartphone today, a Samsung is by far the best choice to make, coming in with the most impressive hardware at the lowest price. While this is an accurate statement, it’s also because Samsung is really the only game in town. Various manufacturers have talked about releasing a folding smartphone for years, including Oppo and TCL, but only a few have actually done so. Most recently, Xiaomi released the Mi Mix Fold but only in China. It looks similar to the Galaxy Fold range but in true Xiaomi style, it doesn’t cost as much, except you’ve got to import one to try it. Huawei for a while looked like it was going to be Samsung’s major challenger. The original Huawei Mate X was different from the Fold with an outwardly folding screen, as was the Mate XS.
