iFixit Teardown of Samsung Galaxy Fold Reveals Likely Design Flaw

[weez999]

Sorry but folding phones are taking it way too far. This is in my opinion, just straight up stupid. You can't convince me otherwise.

 

[gsurf123]

I doubt Samsungs engineers overlooked what iFixit "discovered". They have tremendous insight on lots of dissembling and maintainability, but this is a stretch.

 

[Romeo_Nightfall]

I think this is indicative of a bigger problem than most people realise, or at least, care to admit.

https://daringfireball.net/2019/04/know_when_to_fold_em

Copy it for apple and then society at all. This dysfunction is a system inherent dysfunction of inequality and greed. Tim apple was saved by an last old apple spirit , but they die like flies - apples keyboard still exists and holds every sane person from buying a Mac.
[doublepost=1556114620][/doublepost]

Samsung has, what - a year? Maybe more? of R&D into this phone and ifixit identified the problem by taking it apart that took probably 10 minutes?

Dang.

I told You days ago, without opening this thing, it’s obvious.
HUAWEI has a protected hinge for a good reason! Huawei has the cool guys nowadays, Samsung is more a backyard producer. Good silicon but worse implementation of final products.

 

[Shanghaichica]

Sorry, I disagree on both counts.

Just became some no name company came out with a flexible something a tad before them is meaningless. They couldn’t have anticipated that would happen, and the reality is that they have been gunning for 6-8 years to be first. And of course besting Apple is part of that. That’s self evident.

Your comment about AirPower is actually the opposite of the truth, 180° from reality. AirPower is actually a perfect example of Apple’s discipline. They’d rather cancel a project and suffer public criticism then sell a product that didn’t meet their high standards.

Sorry, I disagree on both counts.

Just became some no name company came out with a flexible something a tad before them is meaningless. They couldn’t have anticipated that would happen, and the reality is that they have been gunning for 6-8 years to be first. And of course besting Apple is part of that. That’s self evident.

Your comment about AirPower is actually the opposite of the truth, 180° from reality. AirPower is actually a perfect example of Apple’s discipline. They’d rather cancel a project and suffer public criticism then sell a product that didn’t meet their high standards.

It’s not Apple they wanted to beat with the folding screen. They could have waited another year to release rue fold and still beat Apple by a comfortable margin. It was Huawei they were trying to beat.

 

[baller1308]

Kind of an unacceptable ‘flaw’ from a $2000 tech device. It Makes you wonder how much quality testing was completed on the Fold during the R&D phase. I don’t know that this entirely damages Samsung’s branding, but it doesn’t look good either for what they were calling the ‘future’.

I would assume they would do quite a bit of testing, but probably in a sealed environment with robots opening and closing the device.

Similar to the iPhone 4 issue where call quality would degrade if you placed your finger over one of the bands. No issues in a monitored environment and even when they would take it outside they'd use a case.

 

[Darth Tulhu]

Firstly Apple has had major production issues in the past and blamed it on user/operator error before sheepishly doing a recall.
Secondly this is the price of innovation there will be glitches (though Samsung should have tested more internally.)
The Huawei Mate X does not appear to have the same issue and is way ahead of the iPhone when it comes to innovation, curious to hear the spin Apple fans have for it. As consumers we should applaud new choices, not hope for their failure based on the company.

While one thing doesn't absolve the other, I agree that this is definitely the price of innovation and that we should applaud new choices.

We should want these companies to suceed in providing new, interesting products without the cheerleading that seems to be pervasive here.

This is a device that has no precedent, so any kinks should be expected. It is in no way the same as the Apple keyboard situation, in which something nice was replaced with something...nowhere near as good.

I'm a fan of good tech, regardless of where it comes from.

That's not to say Samsung didn't ROYALLY screw up here, but hey, let's see if they fix it.

 

[deckard666]

If they can't fix it, it might not even make it to market. That'll make it easier to push the whole AirPower mess under the carpet...

Don’t remember AirPower appearing as a 2k product ...

 

[pward]

Kind of an unacceptable ‘flaw’ from a $2000 tech device. It Makes you wonder how much quality testing was completed on the Fold during the R&D phase. I don’t know that this entirely damages Samsung’s branding, but it doesn’t look good either for what they were calling the ‘future’.

They will have tested it, but perhaps not enough in 'real world' conditions where dust and other contaminates abound.

 

[davidwes]

I am so frustrated with people laughing saying a folded phone is dumb.

They really screwed up the physical design of this thing, and almost every reviewer said DO NOT BUY IT - but at the same time almost all reviewers LOVED the phone. If your current iPhone looked the same and then could fold out and look like your iPad, wouldn't you buy it??? Just because Samsung made a horrible product doesn't mean the concept of folding phones is wrong.

 

[TMRJIJ]

Why some posters are acting like Samsung realesed this to the public already?

It a good thing this and other faults were caught early.

This product was on its way to being released had reviewers not have broken their test models beforehand. These faults were not caught early and Samsung had to have known these faults were there.

Samsung shouldn't even bother releasing the phone this year. They could've have continued testing it so as to critique the design. They still would've been first with a foldable phone but also one that works right out of the box.

 

[Darth Tulhu]

Sorry but folding phones are taking it way too far. This is in my opinion, just straight up stupid. You can't convince me otherwise.

Can you elaborate on WHY it's stupid?

This is a mini tablet that folds and makes calls...

Wouldn't it be awesome if this DID work? I feel this is the truly relevant question.

I saw some concepts where you could take a tablet-like device, fold it around your wrist, and use it that way as well.

This is only the beginning. Someone is working towards it and WILL figure it out, even if it's 10 years from now.

From my perspective, we are living in an impossible future I could not have imagined (2015 seemed AMAZING in 1985).

When I saw this, and then the Huawei one, I really could not believe what I was seeing.

I'd LOVE this if it worked, regardless of who it came from.

 

[Abazigal]

I am so frustrated with people laughing saying a folded phone is dumb.

They really screwed up the physical design of this thing, and almost every reviewer said DO NOT BUY IT - but at the same time almost all reviewers LOVED the phone. If your current iPhone looked the same and then could fold out and look like your iPad, wouldn't you buy it??? Just because Samsung made a horrible product doesn't mean the concept of folding phones is wrong.

Therein lies the problem.

This isn’t a phone which can be unfolded into a tablet. It’s a tablet which you fold in half to keep in your pocket. It’s a poor experience however one spins it.

Which is precisely what happens when you let engineering take charge at a company. You have a cool piece of tech which you force yourself to implement somehow, even if the end product doesn’t necessarily make sense.

This product should never have existed.

 

[TMRJIJ]

Count my name as someone!
Your post is an indirect offense to many people, You cover it as opinion

What problem merit you having a foldable screen device? Our current phones were working fine. It did not solve any problems nor is it changing the way we use smartphones and tablet; just something cool to have. Nobody will be losing any sleep if this product got delayed.

 

[TheShadowKnows!]

To achieve the fold, the thin bezel that surrounds (and protects) the screen leaves a gap where the two halves meet... These gaps are less likely to cause immediate screen damage, but will definitely attract dirt.

Samsung should call Apple and request licensing rights to the condoms engineered for the new-generation butterfly keyboards.

Given the predicament they find themselves, if there is IP involved, then Samsung will gladly pay the condom licensing fees. And Cook seeing this fresh opportunity to turn the butterfly fiasco into profit, will gladly comply to license Apple's condom-infused keyboard technology./s

 

[KazKam]

iFixit Teardown of Samsung Galaxy Fold Reveals Likely Design Flaw

TLDR; We found it! They tried to make the screen fold in half! Durp durp.

 

[samwight]

Phones went from folding (flip phones) to flat (blackberry) even when the fold was between a keyboard and a screen. Why go back to folding when it's *so* much harder to do??

 

[macfacts]

So many people here seem to think Samsung's failure at making a good folding screen pbone/tablet would affect potential galaxy s10 purchasers. Nope.

Why would I as a consumer care if Samsung made a bad attempt at releasing a folding device?

I'm not a shareholder and probably most of the haters here aren't either.

 

[bladerunner2000]

It Makes you wonder how much quality testing was completed on the Fold during the R&D phase.

Not enough.

 

[Crowbot]

Hyperbole should not reign over reason. Taking an unbiased look, the Samsung Fold is a work of modern art, surpassing the likes of antiquated vestiges like the Mona Lisa, David, and Othello. Credit where credit is due. No one wants “productivity” or “creativity” on their phones or computers. We want novelty. If it folds, it’s cool. If it has a curved display, it’s cool. People brandish phones and use them to consume content. That’s all. So stop it, Apple. Clips? Music Memos? Siri Shortcuts? Health? Measure? News? No. Just no. You are embarrassing yourself.

It really shows you what kind of company Apple and Samsung are when one focuses on novelty like folding phones and the other focuses on nonsense like TrueDepth.

You're not getting the full value if all you use the pocket computer called the iPhone for is "brandishing" and "consuming content". I like some of Apple's doodads (like True Depth) and some I don't (I have no use for Animoji) but overall it's a productivity device for millions.
[doublepost=1556120216][/doublepost]

All of us who have balked at the silly premise of folding phones have always had the basics of durability as its main flaw. I know of no material in existence that can fold perfectly and retain its shape without deforming or tearing indefinitely.

I think what Samsung was going for was a gentler fold than they ended up with, hence the "screen protector" that people were pulling off. But it's obvious it wasn't ready for prime time. New materials may make it easier.

 

[Dephtones]

8 years and they still had something like this happen? Don’t see how this ends well unless they scrap them all and start from scratch.

 

[realtuner]

Therein lies the problem.

This isn’t a phone which can be unfolded into a tablet. It’s a tablet which you fold in half to keep in your pocket. It’s a poor experience however one spins it.

Which is precisely what happens when you let engineering take charge at a company. You have a cool piece of tech which you force yourself to implement somehow, even if the end product doesn’t necessarily make sense.

This product should never have existed.

Even worse, it’s an Android tablet that folds into a phone.

 

[MacOH21]

Is an old flip phone not also a “folding” phone? I understand the obvious difference but Samsung’s attempt here just brings back old issues already solved. Issues like: broken hinges, thickness when closed, etc.

 

[repoman016]

Samsung created the folding phone because they found that screens can be foldable, not because it can improve user experience. It's a typical case of solution searching for a problem. And the management of Samsung is so desperate to be the first one, ignoring all the potential problems and used the reviewers as Guinea pigs.

But it's a company that released an exploding phone and the only one that is still widely banned by all airlines. What can we expect?

I kinda disagree here. The 6 sold so well because it had a bigger display than the 5s. The plus models still sell well and they continue to make + models with every new release. IMO the biggest problem with + models is they are great to view media but terrible to fit in your pocket and lug around. Why not make a phone that fits in your pocket like a 5s, but can play media like an 8+?

give it 5-10 years and every phone will be foldable.

 

[DNichter]

I'm still surprised at how bad this product is. It adds no value over what we have today and is already having quality issues. Rushing a brand new type of product to market is never a good idea and they should have waited until the tech/design was ready. This gamble may be too tough to come back from in the short term.
[doublepost=1556121524][/doublepost]

I disagree with this. Bigger screens are better than smaller screens during use, but they are a nuisance to carry around. Phones have evolved to a point where the screens cannot get bigger, as the phones are already cumbersome to many. Folding, if it worked, would offer both, compact form for carrying and a huge screen.

So a phone that's much taller and double the thickness of what we have today is not going to be a nuisance to carry around? The Verge guys said the only option was a purse or coat jacket. This product isn't any better than what we have today.
[doublepost=1556121896][/doublepost]

Samsung has, what - a year? Maybe more? of R&D into this phone and ifixit identified the problem by taking it apart that took probably 10 minutes?

Dang.

They have been working on this tech since 2013.

 

[MacBebe]

8 years and they still had something like this happen? Don’t see how this ends well unless they scrap them all and start from scratch.

I think Samsung knows that it was not ready. They just want to release it so they can brag for being the first to do it.
Just an opinion.