Got a tip for us?
Let us know
Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.
Samsung Reveals New Launch Dates for Delayed Galaxy Fold
- Thread starter MacRumors
- Start date
- Sort by reaction score
This device is a failure for two reasons:
- It runs Android.
- Android tablets are useless and unsupported devices.
Samsung market share is irrelevant as to whether devices are supported. Android tablets greatly outnumber iPads but developers still don’t bother to support them.
Everything old is new again. Flip phones are back. I still cannot understand why this is necessary?
The Apple fanboyism in these forums is very real, only those who are blind to it cannot see it. These forums went crazy in a similar fashion when Samsung released their Note line with a large screen. The people here claimed nobody would want such a large phone, you would look silly holding it to your head, it won't fit in most people's jeans, Samsung is desperate, etc. etc. etc.
The Apple Plus/Max model is now the best selling iPhone, surprise surprise, people actually want large phones.
I carry around an iPad mini because I want a larger screen so for me, a screen almost as big as an iPad mini that I can fold into my pocket is amazing.
Power users want large displays. Phones have become more and more powerful as software and hardware has developed. We are already talking about the 1 device dream. A phone that is also your computer.
When Apple releases a foldable iPhone or iPad, people on these forums are going to have to change their drawers for a fresh pair and you won't hear any of this nonsense for two reasons,
1. Apple fanboyism
2. Samsung will have established that people want foldable devices, same way they established the so called phablet craze.
Last edited:
Im excited to see whether they have hurried this one too... to beat annual iphone lineup announcement
It's will only have been five months since the first time they put those models into reviewer's hands. In those five months, apparently they incorporated the feedback, re-designed them, modified their manufacturing process, manufactured modified parts, and tested the new design? I'm skeptical that they were able to do this and achieve a quality outcome.
Last edited by a moderator:
CNET has an article on the new differences, as they have one in hand. It looks like Samsung did more than just hacks.
No visible screen protector
If you peel this off, it immediately makes the Fold's screen unusable. Now, this polymer layer extends beneath the plastic bezel. It's still there but you can't see it, and that's how it should be.
Screen caps at the ends of the phone
New T-shaped plastic "caps" plug up air gaps that existed before when you fold the phone's screen -- this is the slack that's created as part of the kinetic process. I tried jamming my fingernails around this part to see if I could create any openings, but wasn't able to. That's reassuring.
Reinforced screen
The previous Galaxy Fold design had a layer of metal supporting a cushiony layer and then the top portion of the display. Samsung says this caused the screen crease that runs down the phone's center to look more prominent. Now it's reinforced the screen by adding a second layer of metal on top of that cushion. We'll see if that reduces the crease's appearance and also keeps damage by pressing too hard on the display at bay.
[doublepost=1567704635][/doublepost]
One, Android is just as good as iOS, just different. Get over it, that doesn't play anymore.
And two, odd, I have a Note 10+ in my hand right now, and I have not yet seen an app that doesn't support its new screen layout (e.g., smaller camera hole). And a Note 9, plus every iPhone since 2008, so I can compare both platforms easily, without bias. And both are good. This "Samsung is inferior" talk is just nonsense.
This is why Apple takes their time before releasing something so radical.
“We don’t ship junk” - Steve Jobs
Butterfly keyboard. Folding iPads. Macbook battery recall. You're holding it wrong...
Companies make mistakes. All of them.
Did I miss the folding iPad announcement?
Edit: Nevermind, I thought you were talking about the rumors plans for Apple to release a foldable iPad in 2021
Anyway, there’s a difference between some questionable design decisions (I love my 2019 MBP keyboard btw) and rushing just to be “first”
Apple doesn't invent these things. They just wait until the technology has improved enough to implement them. Apple didn't "invent" touchscreens in phones. They were just the first to actually get it right. They'll wait for this until they get it right too.They will in 3 years and people will claim Apple invented bendables
The first one is an improvement. The 2nd and 3rd are hacks. "The display is weak, let's reinforce it. Let's plug the air gaps."
They're not making it so the problems don't happen by designing it, they're literally plugging holes and adding metals to the existing design to make it more sturdy.
"I cut this wood a bit too short, I'll just put this shim in and it'll be fine." -> hack
"I cut this wood to the correct size." -> not a hack
Sort of like the approach Apple took with their keyboard issues.
You do not have to convince me, I am not the one claiming they invent things, I was making fun of the many people who do
I never said Samsung is inferior. I said Android is inferior (I actually used the term "useless") on tablets. Which is a fact, not nonsense.
Please show me the SDK that’s required for developers to use the Note 10 screen or account for the camera hole. I went to the Samsung developer site and couldn’t find one. Apps looking fine doesn't mean all the developers suddenly rushed out to "modify" their Apps so they would work.
To work with the Galaxy Fold developers will have to use the Samsung SDK and modify their Apps for the best experience. Which I'm predicting they won't do because of the fact it's such a tiny market.
We hear this sort of claim all the time, but it is simply not true. At least not in general. Apple sometimes waits until they can make a significant improvement on an existing technology. But that is true for all the big tech companies. Mostly, tech just advances across the industry, with various companies periodically taking the lead.
Here are a couple counter examples to show that Apple doesn't, in general, wait until they are able to do things right.
Apple maps was considerably later and worse than other options.
Apple was years behind on fast and wireless charging, and when they did implement them, they made no significant improvements to industry standards. In fact, the industry was already beginning to move to new, faster standards.
I am not saying Apple is worse than other companies in this regard. I am saying they are typical.
No, you missed all the iPad exchanges because their iPad was bent out of the box (and Apple says that's "normal".). I'll bet the 2019/20 iPads won't have that problem. Because Apple will find out why that happened, and fix it in the next version.
As I said in an earlier post, you don't make progress on new things by having it sit in a laboratory. You get it in people's hands, find out what works and doesn't work, then refine it.
If apps are "looking fine", then why would they need to modify anything? Obviously, any changes needed to work right on newer Samsung phones were already incorporated or nothing special needed to be done. Which means they are supported.
The Fold may be a tiny market in the US, but Asia is going to go ape**** over this. (you know, the US isn't the only market in the world). And you can be sure the major app makers will update their apps if Samsung sells something. 90 percent of what's on both app stores is junk anyways.
You completely missed my original point. Samsung has SDKs for various features so App developers can make their Apps work with them. Do all camera Apps automatically work with the new S-Pen remote features on your Note 10? No, because Samsung has an SDK developers can use to incorporate that functionality. Likewise with the Fold Samsung has an SDK developers can use to make sure Apps work properly (for example, transitioning from folded to unfolded and to make use of the extra/odd screen size).
Not sure how you can claim developers are going to start modifying their Apps when A) a large number already ignore Samsung SDKs to make their Apps work for specific features and B) developers can't even be bothered to optimize their Apps for tablets right now, and the Fold will sell a tiny fraction of the Android tablet market.
Not sure I understand. You refuse to name the product but claim it was on the front page of MR?
Why can’t you just simply say: “It was the xxxx.”?
The only instance I can think of would be the PowerBook 5300 around 1996. Is that what you meant?
They will soon, because its Samsung. End of story. You seem to think Android is some minor fringe OS and Samsung a minor player. 87.5 percent of smartphones in the world are now running Android, with Samsung having a 22 percent share of that..
Hard to say. I don’t think anyone at Apple expected it to catch the world by storm like iPhone did. Or become a status symbol like AirPods did. It couldn’t; it’s in your home, so you can’t really flaunt it.
I also don’t think they were under the illusion they would have the same unit sales as Amazon Echo. Do they really need them, though? What’s wrong with Apple just making a nice speaker? Why isn’t Apple allowed to make a product that is just… fine, and not the next huge smash hit?