As expected, Samsung revealed their latest Galaxy S10 range last night during their annual unpacked event. While there were no real surprises on that front thank to early leaks, there was speculation that the Korean company would also reveal the first widely available foldable phone from a major manufacturer – and they did just that.
It’s called the Galaxy Fold, and it’s effectively two regular phones duct-taped together with a magic hinge between them. That’s a little reductive of course, because the Galaxy Fold is a marvel of engineering. It’s a hybrid between a phone and a tablet with a 7.3-inch “Infinity Flex” display on the inside, but fold it in half and you have a phone with a 4.6-inch screen.
To make the most of that larger screen, the device can run up to three separate apps on the screen at any time, so you could ostensibly have YouTube, WhatsApp and your browser open and active. Because of its configuration, the Galaxy Fold packs in 6 cameras: three on the back, two on the inside and one on the cover.
Like the one S10 variant, it’ll run on Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 855 chipset, and pack in 512GB of solid-state storage to go with its 12GB of RAM (for all of that multitasking).
To balance the device out, each half of the phone has its own battery, giving the Fold 4380mAh of battery power. It really is a beautiful, and importantly exciting phone, and it ushers in the next wave of smartphones.
Of course, that sort of thing comes at a premium, and the Galaxy Fold will sell for an eye-watering $1980. When Apple revealed its iPhone Xs at up to $1349, people scoffed, but here we have a phone that’s just under $2000. Yes, it’s far more exciting technologically, but that is an awful lot of money for a phone. It’ll be launching locally around April or May, with no local pricing just yet. I wouldn’t expect it to cost any less than R32,999 – and even that’s being optimistic. The $999 starting price for the S10+ equates to a local price of R20,999 locally, so I’d expect something a little closer to R40 000. Yikes.
SAMSUNG GALAXY FOLD SPECS
| Display size, resolution | 4.6-inch Super AMOLED; 7.3-inch QXGA+ Dynamic AMOLED |
|---|---|
| Mobile software | Android 9.0 with Samsung One UI |
| Camera | 16-megapixel (ultra wide-angle), 12-megapixel (wide-angle), 12-megapixel (telephoto) |
| Front-facing camera | Two 10-megapixel, 8-megapixel 3D depth |
| Processor | Octa-core Qualcomm Snapdragon 855 |
| Storage | 512GB |
| RAM | 12GB |
| Expandable storage | None |
| Battery | 4,380 |
| Fingerprint sensor | Right side of phone |
| Special features | Foldable display, wireless charging, fast charging |
| Price off-contract (USD) | $1,980 |
Last Updated: February 21, 2019
Admiral Chief
February 21, 2019 at 09:22
R40k phone or R40k gaming pc….
MAKE THE RIGHT CHOICE
G8crasha
February 22, 2019 at 11:24
Gaming PC hands down, of course. What type of a gamer would I be if I chose an overpriced piece of plastic over some raw crunchiness.
Gavin Mannion
February 21, 2019 at 09:43
it’s amazing tech, but the tiny front screen and massive size of the thing makes it a total gimmick.
Gustav Willem Diedericks
February 21, 2019 at 13:43
Well, it can at least double-up as a defensive weapon here in sunny SA. Alas, mace and tasers do cost less though.
Craig "Crios" Boonzaier
February 21, 2019 at 12:03
Samsung should revive #BendGate as part their marketing.
Pariah
February 21, 2019 at 07:39
How about: “no, get fucked, I can buy a top-of-the-line gaming rig for that moneys and do more with it”?
I mean, does it have raytracing at 4k 60fps? Does it?!
SagatatiaRZA
February 21, 2019 at 07:39
Yeah but what really is the use of an amazing pc with state of the art tech if it doesn’t FOLD? Pfft.
G8crasha
February 21, 2019 at 07:48
I’m just glad that we finally have some kind of real innovation hitting the mobile world, regardless of whether one believes it is an important innovation or not. Now we just sit back and see where this goes, but I can assure you, I am no early adopter for something like this, so it’ll be a wait and see attitude for me.
Original Heretic
February 21, 2019 at 10:09
My thoughts, too. A phone that actually seems to be offering something new.
I’ll bet it plays Diablo well.
Gustav Willem Diedericks
February 21, 2019 at 13:43
No, we don’t have phones, Blizzards. Ignore the comment above that should have remained hidden behind the curtain of sanity.
justlikemo
February 21, 2019 at 08:42
Nokia “We’ve been having it” https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/7acf7fdc4107d854a882b328b309a126c666bef578a79a154b0b97af216e09db.png
Craig "Crios" Boonzaier
February 21, 2019 at 12:03
Samsung should revive #BendGate as part their marketing.