Samsung and others (notably LG) have been working on foldable phones for many years now, and finally the technology could see the light of day in 2017. Here\u2019s what we know about the Samsung Galaxy X foldable phone and its release date.<\/b>
The foldable phone is not just a pipedream — according to insiders we could see a working prototype of Samsung’s Galaxy X in Q3 2017!
A foldable phone is exactly as it sounds, one that either folds inward (like a clamshell phone) or outward and reveals a tablet-like device when stretched out. This is possible with the use of a bendable (rather than flexible, as seen in the Galaxy S7 edge) OLED panel.
Samsung, Lenovo and LG have each showed off bendable displays and devices at various industry events, and have registered many patents for the technology. Previously called Project Valley, Samsung\u2019s technology has become known as the Samsung Galaxy X, which may or may not be its eventual name upon release.
Samsung originally worked on fold-in phones, which close up like a wallet, but having completed its work there it has moved on to fold-out phones. These should be more convenient for the user, who wouldn\u2019t need to unfold the phone every time they wanted to use it.
The Samsung Galaxy X was originally rumoured to be a 5in phone that could fold out into an 8in tablet, but it\u2019s now suspected to fold out into a 7in tablet. It\u2019s indeed possible that there will actually be two Samsung foldable phones released.
According to rumours the screen resolution is expected to be 4K (3840×2160 pixels), ensuring that it remains high-res when folded. The Galaxy X could also feature a dual-camera at the rear, and one of the latest Qualcomm Snapdragon processors — most likely now the Snapdragon 835. There should be a microSD card slot, but the battery will not be removable.
A patent application filed by Samsung in late 2016 shows some renders of what the eventual Galaxy X may look like (via Sammobile ):
Although Samsung\u2019s foldable technology is said to be ready, a source close to the matter told the Korea Herald that the device has not been unveiled because of marketability and profitability issues. Plans have also been held up by the political scandal involving president Park Geun-hye and her confidante Choi Soon-sil.
However, Samsung hopes that its foldable phone will be unveiled in the third quarter of 2017, and the company will ship more than 100,000 units.
This ties in with a report from ETNews , which suggests there will be a working prototype ready to show off in Q3 2017.
A new report says that the phone might go into production, on a small scale, in the fourth quarter of 2017 ahead of an ‘ H2 2018 \u201cclam-type\u201d mass production blastoff’.
Meanwhile, LG, which is said to have the edge on the technology, is tipped to also release its foldable screens in 2017, though later in the fourth quarter. It, too, will ship more than 100,000 units, according to the Korea Herald\u2019s source, but this tech could go to other clients such as Apple or Huawei, while Samsung will use its bendable display for its own devices.
A year ago Sammobile reported that Project Valley would not be available globally at launch, but that the UK and Ireland, Germany, Italy, South Korea, Nordic countries, France and Poland were on the list.<\/p>\n