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The phone obviously theoretically could work for anyone who would like the benefits of a full size phone in the form factor of something much smaller and ostensibly protected when not in use.

Like I just mentioned, phones need protection when in use.
 
I'm surprised by all the hate. This form factor won't be for everyone, and Samsung's first efforts with folding screen technology were a debacle, but this is a really nice idea overall that will be useful to many when perfected. Among other things, this design is probably much better than current phones at protecting the screen in the event of a hard drop, and it will fit in pockets that otherwise couldn't accommodate a screen of this size. I could also see women choosing a device like this because they can drop it in a handbag without a thought.

For various reasons including price, I wouldn't actually choose it, but it strikes me as worthwhile innovation.
This thread is toxic. I admire Samsung for trying new things. Even if foldable displays don’t go anywhere, the only way we’ll ever know is if people try.
People hated the iPhone 4 leaks saying things like “Apple would never release such an ugly phone” and now it’s hailed as one of the most beautiful phones ever created. There was a ton of hate for finger print scanners and Face ID when they were fresh and now having a phone without at least one of these options is unimaginable. If we just stuck to what we know and never tried new things then we wouldn’t have half the amazing features we have now. I won’t be purchasing one of these devices but I’m stoked to see competitors pushing the limits.
 
For $1,445, I'd get a laptop and a basic phone. At least with a laptop, I can work and make money. Who came up with this price positioning?
 
This site is called MacRumors. I suspect most members prefer Apple over Samsung but I could be wrong.

so you're buying on day 1? look forward to your review.

OH WOW thank you so much for letting me now what the name of the site was called, for the past 10 years I’ve been trying to figure that out. You’re a hero sir.

Anyways, no I don’t plan on buying one and never said I was. But I do respect companies that takes risks and try to renovate. Something Apple has not done in years. As you can see in my signature, I enjoy Apple products. Have I thought about buying a Samsung in the past, definitely. Apple has not wowed me in years. So we will see. I won’t be the first person in line to get this, but kudos to Samsung for trying something different.
 
When folded the phone is roughly 3.5" x 3". What phone do you know how that's that size in 2020?



Doubtful that it'll be $1500 forever. Tech generally comes down in price as manufacturing processes and components get cheaper.
And double the thickness.
 
Nintendo designed this over 14 years ago...

View attachment 936269

They did before... :p

donkey-kong-game-watch-multi-screen.jpg
 
Apple fanboys hating on Samsung, shocking.

At least someone is trying something that is actually innovative instead of just adding another camera to the back of the phone.
The only real innovation here is how to get people to pay well over flagship prices for a beta product, just so Samsung can say they were first at something. I commend them on the manufacturing technology, but not on a final product.
 
I admire Samsung for trying new things. Even if foldable displays don’t go anywhere, the only way we’ll ever know is if people try.

You admire Samsung for releasing flawed products and charging customers for them? You know its 100% possible for companies to design and test products without selling them until they are ready right? Just because Apple, Google, et. al. don't release garbage flip phones doesn't mean they haven't tried them.

If people want to throw their money away on garbage products like this, hey, its their money. But Samsung doesn't deserve praise for releasing bad products just because they are different.
 
This thread is toxic. I admire Samsung for trying new things. Even if foldable displays don’t go anywhere, the only way we’ll ever know is if people try.
People hated the iPhone 4 leaks saying things like “Apple would never release such an ugly phone” and now it’s hailed as one of the most beautiful phones ever created. There was a ton of hate for finger print scanners and Face ID when they were fresh and now having a phone without at least one of these options is unimaginable. If we just stuck to what we know and never tried new things then we wouldn’t have half the amazing features we have now. I won’t be purchasing one of these devices but I’m stoked to see competitors pushing the limits.

Right? I don't see anyone losing in this scenario (this phone existing). For example, Apple gets a look at demand for products like this/their durability/etc, Samsung tests their technology in hopes of it gaining traction and potentially selling its displays to other companies; and consumers like us get to try technology that's fun/bold/new/whatever you want to call it.

What makes technology fun, for me at least, is how experimental it can get. Plus, $1500 is not an otherworldly price, relatively speaking.
 
When folded the phone is roughly 3.5" x 3". What phone do you know how that's that size in 2020?
You forgot a dimension... the one that creates a bulbous square in your jeans... it won't be easy to slide in and out of your pocket at the thickness of two phones (+ hinge gap).

Doubtful that it'll be $1500 forever. Tech generally comes down in price as manufacturing processes and components get cheaper.
Not the point here — this is a glorified hardware beta Samsung is overcharging for (compared to flagship prices) and unlike a beta, it won't get updated as they figure errors out, they will just release another version in 6 months for another 1.5K.

I appreciate what Samsung is doing technology and manufacturing-wise, but this should stay in-house until it is a final product. It's shameful to expect someone to pay well over the average to both beta test a product they won't gain anything from, and find their R&D when they are a massively wealthy corporation.
 
Are they going to be able to sell all five of them picture here?
That's what they said about Galaxy Note 1 (the first phablet). Infamously Steve Jobs mocked the phones with screen size greater than the "perfect" 3.5". He also said that "no one’s going to buy that". He probably had Apple fans in mind who can't buy a lot of good things because they are not made by Apple.
 
Anyways, no I don’t plan on buying one and never said I was. But I do respect companies that takes risks and try to renovate. Something Apple has not done in years. As you can see in my signature, I enjoy Apple products. Have I thought about buying a Samsung in the past, definitely. Apple has not wowed me in years. So we will see. I won’t be the first person in line to get this, but kudos to Samsung for trying something different.
I get what you are saying and I generally agree that Samsung should be commended for trying something different — however — the real issue here is that this is essentially a beta product costing a third to a half more than polished finalized flagship products that they themselves create. This isn't (or at least shouldn't be) about Apple, this is about what we as consumers are becoming accustomed to as supporters of technology in general. It's the value proposition of asking customers to openly fund future products with the purchase of something half-baked and over-priced relative to their other products and won't be rewarded with the improvements the beta hardware's public testing garners.

I obviously don't speak for all but I think I can speak for some when I say that had Samsung perfected this in-house, not rushed to make it public to be first in the public mindshare, but made a proper final product they would be given much more credit — even at that same price. As it is now, anyone who buys this is paying a premium to make some else's product 2-3 years down the road much better. At which point everyone would have already caught up. You shouldn't assume that just because other companies don't have a demo for sale that they don't also have a version of this in their own R&D lab as we speak. They might have just had the good sense to not charge their customers for testing their ideas.
 
Nintendo designed this over 14 years ago...
Hey, the 3DS actually had both halves with screens, although the top half had a true 3D display (using parallax occlusion), so Samsung isn't really there yet...
3DS in Red. Also had in brilliant blue and black.
nintendo-3ds-red.jpg

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Look, Samsung is trying to make the flip phone cool for a new generation. I owned a couple of flip phones. But later I switched to slider phones so texting was easier.
 
A product with planned obsolence build in which sheep people will buy it without thinking. Seriously, this is the worst product in recent years in smartphone market. Folding phones are DOA and I really hope Apple knows it and will never release such nonsense.

When I see someone with this phone I will ask them why they buy it just so I know how silly they are :D :D :D :D :D :D

Got news for ya....sheep people buy iPhones to.
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It isn't really smaller, though. It's just two halves of a phone piled on top of each other in "small mode".

Don't know whether to laugh or cringe at your response. The phone is smaller. you said it yourself.
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You admire Samsung for releasing flawed products and charging customers for them? You know its 100% possible for companies to design and test products without selling them until they are ready right? Just because Apple, Google, et. al. don't release garbage flip phones doesn't mean they haven't tried them.

If people want to throw their money away on garbage products like this, hey, its their money. But Samsung doesn't deserve praise for releasing bad products just because they are different.

Oh my gosh what a thread. Apple releases flawed/beta products all the time.
 
Like I just mentioned, phones need protection when in use.
No. If you want to be accurate about it, they need protection at all times. Since phones are in the "not in use" state a lot more than they are in the "in use" state, affording them more protection the majority of the time could be a more beneficial design choice for some users.
 
This thread is toxic. I admire Samsung for trying new things. Even if foldable displays don’t go anywhere, the only way we’ll ever know is if people try.
People hated the iPhone 4 leaks saying things like “Apple would never release such an ugly phone” and now it’s hailed as one of the most beautiful phones ever created. There was a ton of hate for finger print scanners and Face ID when they were fresh and now having a phone without at least one of these options is unimaginable. If we just stuck to what we know and never tried new things then we wouldn’t have half the amazing features we have now. I won’t be purchasing one of these devices but I’m stoked to see competitors pushing the limits.

I largely agree with you but to be clear Apple has released stuff that is not good. Like Antennagate, or It-Bends gate and then denied for years there was an issue only to be proven wrong. So give Samsung its moment to release new things. I would buy one if not for the price.

Oh, and pretty much all the phone makers have been lying about 5G. They certainly display it on your phone but nearly NO ONE actually has it. Yeah, they will blame the carriers but they do have an obligation to no allude to capabilities that are not there.
 
Fast forward 5 years: Apple releases a folding phone to the adoration of those currently calling it a terrible concept (not device, concept).
Who thinks it's a terrible concept? This particular design is bad because it doesn't save space nor give you a bigger screen. All of them so far have been tech demo products, Apple almost never releases something when it's still in that stage. If/When Apple does it, you can bet it will be better than this.
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This thread is toxic. I admire Samsung for trying new things. Even if foldable displays don’t go anywhere, the only way we’ll ever know is if people try.
People hated the iPhone 4 leaks saying things like “Apple would never release such an ugly phone” and now it’s hailed as one of the most beautiful phones ever created. There was a ton of hate for finger print scanners and Face ID when they were fresh and now having a phone without at least one of these options is unimaginable. If we just stuck to what we know and never tried new things then we wouldn’t have half the amazing features we have now. I won’t be purchasing one of these devices but I’m stoked to see competitors pushing the limits.

There is a difference between trying things and actually selling them to your customers. You really seem to be ignoring that extremely important line between the two. Nobody's bashing the folding idea here, other than this particular implementation which is just nearly useless as it does very little to reduce the phone's size and actually makes it so thick that it doesn't fit well in a pocket. Samsung has a track record of not doing things right until they're shown how...a LONG, LONG track record of it, going back to the 80's. How many failed Galaxy Gears did they make between the rumors of an Apple Watch and the release of that Apple Watch, for instance? So far, of the things that I feel Samsung actually did that influenced our modern smartphones, them being larger is about the only thing I credit to them. Which was mostly the result of them needing a larger battery in the days before Android adopted more sensible power conservation measures and LTE before the low power radios came along. Apple did not adopt LTE until a low power radio was ready, and the iPhone was the first device to have it.
 
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No. If you want to be accurate about it, they need protection at all times. Since phones are in the "not in use" state a lot more than they are in the "in use" state, affording them more protection the majority of the time could be a more beneficial design choice for some users.

Why would something not in use be at risk of damage?
 
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