In mid-February 2020, smartphone giant and market leader Samsung introduced the new Galaxy Z Flip, a so-called ‘foldable’ smartphone. Why would you want such a pliable case?
We still know the flip phone from the 1990s. But this new incarnation looks very different. The latest Samsung Galaxy Z Flip has a 6.7-inch touchable OLED screen that folds in half halfway. What is particularly striking is that Samsung uses ultra-thin bendable glass, until now manufacturers released their folding phones with a plastic version.
Why a foldable phone?
The big advantage of the foldable phones is that the makers can play with the format. For example, there are two types: smartphones that fold in length, and smartphones that go in width. Both have their own advantages:
- The models that fold in width like a book have twice as much screen for the same size as a regular smartphone. So you can put a kind of small tablet in your pocket.
- The lengthwise folding phones, such as the new Samsung Galaxy Z Flip, are smaller when closed than a regular smartphone. You can also partially fold it and put it down for hands-free video calling, for example.
The eye wants something too
Larger screen, or smaller device: in any case, such a foldable phone just looks very nice. That is also an important reason for further researching this technology. Smartphones have become so well established, so personal, that people like to present a beautiful model. Moreover, most of today’s smartphones are SO good that users have little reason to buy a new one – unless the old one breaks. Innovation is therefore big business for producers.
Not only good news
The question is whether the foldable smartphones are just as durable and sturdy. Reviewers accidentally broke test models of the previous foldable smartphone from Samsung that they were sent, because there was ambiguity about a protective layer on the screen of the phone. Young people in particular regularly walk around with cracks in their screens. In immature hands such a foldable work of art could quickly perish.
Samsung claims that you can open and close the new Galaxy Z Flip about 200,000 times without any problems. If you unlock your smartphone about 100 times a day, you can enjoy this phone for a little over five years. Whether that claim is true remains to be seen.
Source: AD
