Samsung Still Has No Idea When the Galaxy Fold Will Launch

[FFR]

Some people seem to have forgotten the very obvious.

Apple has not been a display innovator for one very obvious reason--they don't make displays. Apple buys displays from Samsung.

So of course display innovation has always happened at Samsung first. Heck, "first" isn't even the right word for it, because Apple isn't making displays at all...so it's not like they are going to be second or third or anything.

What are these people expecting, that Samsung will favor their competitor's phone display advancement before their own? Or that all this time Apple has been an innovative display maker in secret, and any day now we'll see the result?

Apple has innovated in its displays, the OLED display on the iPhone X/Xs/Xs Max are apple displays, there even was a microscopic picture of the subpixel arrangement to prove it, its different.

You do understand that Samsung display is a fabricator. They create the display to apple specification, for apple. It’s not an off the shelf component.

You do know that Samsung doesn’t actually own any amOLED patents, they license it from a separate company, same as apple.


Btw Samsung display suffered a loss in revenue last quarter, they aren’t doing well at all.

 

[Alan Wynn]

I stand with Samsung. They put in the effort. 3D TV, curved displays, Air View, Smart Scroll. Tremendous innovation.

The Galaxy Fold represents a new paradigm in pocket computer man-machine interface. This isn’t a home run. It’s a whole new sport. And only Samsung could have envisioned, designed, engineered, and ship such a product.

Absolutely, a whole new sport. Not sure what sport, but certainly no sport anyone will actually play.

Apple on the other hand are incapable of creating such a device.

Yup, they would have probably had a few people test it before they decided to take pre-orders.

Samsung focuses on novelty. Apple focuses on pragmatic design.

Totally agree with you (from Merriam-Webster):

novelty
noun
nov·el·ty | \ ˈnä-vəl-tē \
plural novelties
Definition of novelty

4: something (such as a song or food item) that provides often fleeting amusement and is often based on a theme —often used attributively

From the Free Dictionary:
prag·mat·ic
(prăg-măt′ĭk)
adj.
1. Dealing or concerned with facts or actual occurrences; practical

Frankly, no one cares for 99% of Apple’s first-party apps. The vast majority of people have crApple folders of all the useless Apple apps: Reminders, News, Podcasts, Books, Stocks, Health, Home, Wallet, Measure, TV, iMovie, GarageBand, Music Memos, Clips, Pages, Keynote, Numbers.

You say this based on what research?

Just some simple examples with minimal research:

When apple introduced Health Records (part of the Health app), there were 39 partners, now there are hundreds.

Almost every U.S. credit card issuer, airline, movie theatre, sporting event, supports Apple Wallet. Apple Pay is the number one mobile payment system in the U.S.

Garageband: Inside Garageband, the Little App Ruling the Sound of Modern Music

Apple fails because they don’t attempt bling. They don’t attempt novelty. Samsung wins because they feed the need for novelty. Throw it out there and see what sticks. It’s about COOL. They GET it. Apple used to be cool but they lame now. 99.9% of people don’t use or need technology as “tools.”

Glad you are not making decisions for Apple.

 

[TracesOfArsenic]

Say what you want about them failing (spectacularly) but they pulled the product when it didn't work. I can't say the same about Apple.

 

[PickUrPoison]

I've said this before, I think they're going to "Airpower" the whole thing.

I don’t think AirPowered works here; it’s way too late to cancel the Fold during development.

Samsung had already gone through the development and testing process, approved the product and started mass production, taken pre-orders, and shipped them to reviewers just days before its scheduled release. Even after foldgate blew up, their initial response was, “were still going to release them on Friday.” Yikes.

Apple’s only “crime” was being so excited about AirPower that they announced it too early. We’ll probably get over it in a decade or so. Or maybe not; some people still ridicule iPhone as flawed at launch: no cut and paste, no 3G, no front camera, etc. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

 

[Bigballer31]

I am really shocked that the reviewers of the fold, brought the issues to light. Being funded by Samsung, they should have been quiet and kept with the glowing reviews like the Verge. Make no mistake, Samsung was going to release the Fold that Friday. People would have the same issues, they just would have been swindled. I can hear Samsung marketing now, “this is a first gen product you knew the risk”. Samsung can release junk, get a pass from the tech press and their apologists, like the Samsung defenders on this site. Why have you come here to spin this disaster? Imagine if Apple would have release something like this? The internet would break and all the networks would have interrupted their programming to bash Apple......lol

 

[johnnygee]

At least they're trying to innovate, unlike Apple shoving down the same stuff down our throats for the past few years and making us pay premium.

I really hated when Jony Ive held a gun to my temple and forced me to sign a check for an iPhone Xs Max.

 

[Alan Wynn]

I really hated when Jony Ive held a gun to my temple and forced me to sign a check for an iPhone Xs Max.

Funny, I really liked it when Craig Federighi held my dog for ransom so I would buy and iPhone X. Made it so I did not have to justify it to anyone: “It was for my dog’s life.”

 

[Abazigal]

I stand with Samsung. They put in the effort. 3D TV, curved displays, Air View, Smart Scroll. Tremendous innovation.

What do we get from Apple? 3D Touch. APFS. Swift. Mission Control. Really, Apple?

Apple fails because they don’t attempt bling. They don’t attempt novelty. Samsung wins because they feed the need for novelty. Throw it out there and see what sticks. It’s about COOL. They GET it. Apple used to be cool but they lame now. 99.9% of people don’t use or need technology as “tools.”

For example, Apple is revamping Reminders for iOS 13. Who uses Reminders??? You know what’s important? Custom icons. Custom fonts. I wanna use Comic Sans as my font but Apple be lame.

Therein lies the problem.

What Samsung did could have been great, had they stuck to their guns and focused on iterating and improving on those features annually. Air view and smart scroll were extremely buggy and unreliable when they first came out, and Samsung just gave up on them when they realised that people weren’t interested in them.

The first gen Apple Watch was very slow and buggy as well, but Apple worked on improving it year after year and today, the series 4 has been credited with having saved multiple lives already.

That to me is the difference between Samsung and Apple, and why I continue to use Apple products. It’s not about cool or lame or whatever, but rather, in the execution and follow through. Apple is not perfect, but the steady progression of things like HomeKit, Apple Watch, etc show commitment to taking something basic and incrementally improving it.

To sum it up, Samsung still doesn’t know what it is they want their products to stand for, and Apple does.

 

[duervo]

Funny, I really liked it when Craig Federighi held my dog for ransom so I would buy and iPhone X. Made it so I did not have to justify it to anyone: “It was for my dog’s life.”

I loved it when Angela Ahrendts kidnapped my sister’s cat and threatened to have it neutered unless our whole family bought HomePods.

Now, we still don’t have HomePods, the cat is fixed, and Angela no longer works for Apple. Coincidence?

 

[ErikGrim]

I love to say I told you so.

 

[TVOR]

A folding display is innovative, I'm not sure why you're arguing its not.

There’s little question that it is innovative in the strictest sense. It if I invented a tennis ball that was also a toaster, it would be innovative... it would it be a worthwhile innovation? To me a folding screen is little more than a solution looking for a problem...especially with that horrible squarish form factor it opens out to!

If/when somebody perfects the technology and creates a phone with a tri-food arrangement that opens out to a tablet-like/similar to 16:9 aspect ratio screen...and when it is reliable...then I feel there is a justification for it! YMMV of course...

 

[TVOR]

You can draw a distinction, but on the internet it's irrelevant.
There is a recognized meaning for innovation, and you can't redefine that to suit your arguments.

Ummm...I don’t think they were seeking to redefine the term...just to state that - for them - innovation hasn’t to be meaningful and useful (again...for them) in order for them to be interested! I feel the same to be honest.

Innovation for the sake of innovation is (to me...just in case you feel the need to defend the meaning of the word again) a fools errand. I value innovation that serves to fulfil a need. Innovation in medical science to save lives is what I would call valuable innovation.

A folding phone, while undoubtedly useful for some who would normally carry a tablet and a phone (can’t be that many people like that surely??), is more a case of pandering to tech heads who want to have the latest and greatest. Unfortunately, I’m doing so I feel that they have created little more than a not that great phone (too bulky and crappy outside screen) and a not that great tablet (not that big of a screen and a weird aspect ratio for most productivity uses which is why most people would also carry a tablet I would imagine).

It seems to me like a truly innovative compromise which, in a single device, provides half the benefits of a good phone and half the benefits of a tablet! Of course, this is said without having actually used one...so my opinion could change once I have used one...but I honestly doubt it! I’m one of those people that would rather carry a phone and a DSLR if I’m going somewhere that I really want to get photos of. Best tool
For the job > convenience in my world.

And no, this isn’t a Samsung bash, I would feel the same if Apple had released the same product...

 

[jonblatho]

A folding display in a form factor like that requires a lot of innovation.

And it looks like actually shipping them will require even more innovation!
[doublepost=1557300069][/doublepost]

Explain how Apple is making this behind closed doors when they won't even be the ones designing or manufacturing the display

Well, here's how it works. They place a small order for parts they think they may need to assemble a prototype which they wish to assemble—whether those parts include 5G modems, flexible OLED displays, or whatever else—and then they assemble said prototype.

 

[T-R-S]

why do you need a phone that folds - people bitch'd about the notch in the IPX a line down the middle of the screen?

 

[TVOR]

I respect your feelings, but they are irrelevant as they don't have any factual basis.

This would be a supposition on your part, which is again irrelevant as you have no factual basis on why people are buying Airpods.

This is an opinion, which on the internet is numerous.
One opinion is no more valid than the next persons, and also irrelevant.

When you can show some third party data to support your opinions, feelings, suppositions then a valid argument can be made.

Wow...I have no issue with you but having just randomly scanned through some of your previous posts, you seem to have a real issue with people daring to voice their opinion. Not every statement ever made publicly has to be a statement of fact or corroborated by multiple sources! Even when people state that it is just their opinion you seemed determined to rule that an opinion is irrelevant.

Of course...you do you...and I don’t mean to offend by saying all this...but wow...what harm does it do (or anybody else) you to let somebody have an opinion that isn’t backed up by linked facts, articles and research?

And that, to be clear, is just my opinion!
[doublepost=1557301714][/doublepost]

I stand with Samsung. They put in the effort. 3D TV, curved displays, Air View, Smart Scroll. Tremendous innovation.

What do we get from Apple? 3D Touch. APFS. Swift. Mission Control. Really, Apple?

Apple fails because they don’t attempt bling. They don’t attempt novelty. Samsung wins because they feed the need for novelty. Throw it out there and see what sticks. It’s about COOL. They GET it. Apple used to be cool but they lame now. 99.9% of people don’t use or need technology as “tools.”

For example, Apple is revamping Reminders for iOS 13. Who uses Reminders??? You know what’s important? Custom icons. Custom fonts. I wanna use Comic Sans as my font but Apple be lame.

Some people prefer function over form. I have no interest in “bling” and I don’t need to feel “cool” to validate my life. If that works for you then go for it! But you can’t say that Apple “fails” they don’t create products that appeal to you personally...there are many (hundreds of millions it would seem) that actually prefer the Apple approach...myself included. They are often the type that would prefer understated Armani over garish Versace...would prefer a reliable Porsche over a gold chrome wrapped Lamborghini spaceship...and can still use tech as a “fashion accessory” as well as merely a practical utilitarian device, but who would prefer something that favours quality of features over quantity of features.

 

[bushman4]

Rule of Thumb........Never buy the first
Model of any new product !
Buy the second release and most of the bugs will be worked out

 

[SoN1NjA]

Well, here's how it works. They place a small order for parts they think they may need to assemble a prototype which they wish to assemble—whether those parts include 5G modems, flexible OLED displays, or whatever else—and then they assemble said prototype.

But that design is restricted by whatever Samsung can make them

 

[SubduedTiger]

It's so futuristic that its launch date is in the year 2162.

 

[31 Flavas]

At least they're trying to innovate, unlike Apple shoving down the same stuff down our throats for the past few years and making us pay premium.

Hm... so what of the 2013 Mac Pro? That didn't work out to well for Apple and had thermal problems. Do I get to claim “At least Apple is trying to innovate and not shoving the same giant box of a computer down our throat.” Let me guess - its only innovation if you identify with it. Specifically, Samsung can go off on their own, make their own judgement calls, and if it doesn't work out - ‘oh well, at least they tried or were trying to be innovative’

But, not Apple.

 

[Shanghaichica]

I really hated when Jony Ive held a gun to my temple and forced me to sign a check for an iPhone Xs Max.

It was Tim that forced me.

 

[31 Flavas]

This! Removing all usb-a ports and replacing with 2 USB-C ports is Apple way of innovation! Now I have to carry an USB-C dongle to connect my yubikey. DIFFERENT and brilliant. The laptop with a protruding USB-C adapter sure looks like an Alien laptop from some future age!

But, hey... at least they’re trying like Samsung is with this folding phone tech.

My iPad Air 2 still works like new. But my less than 3 weeks NEW iPad pro 2017 already has a disfunctioning home button. Not to mention every time I type on my mid 2017 Macbook pro in a meeting, people look at me and sometimes even tell me to quiet down the keyboard noise.

Eh... no worse then having to put up with phones that explode or folding phones that break inside of a week. The next hardware revision will fix it. This kind of stuff comes with the territory. You try your best to avoid this kind of stuff, but you can't forsee some of this stuff.
[doublepost=1557340445][/doublepost]

I don't know why they just don't use two separate screens with a fine line separating them. Those of us of old school put up with the trinitron mask for years and it didn't bother us.

Nah - both Apple and everyone else is trying to sell the no bezel / full screen phone thing. And since we’re all criticizing notches and coveting phones with the lack thereof - how does your suggestion make sense. I mean I can't see any acceptance of a ‘foldable’ iPhone that didn't actually have a folding screen. So why would anyone else?

 

[ActionableMango]

Apple has innovated in its displays, the OLED display on the iPhone X/Xs/Xs Max are apple displays, there even was a microscopic picture of the subpixel arrangement to prove it, its different.

I'm aware of that, but strongly disagree that it is Apple's innovation--that's a huge stretch. I believe you are referring to OLED pentile displays, which is an existing technology invented by some small company that Samsung initially licensed from but then bought. It widely used in panels made by Samsung.

Apple ordering displays with an existing pixel arrangement that exists in many OLED panels and that they had nothing to do with is not an Apple "innovation" just because it's a custom ordered part instead of off-the-shelf.

Btw Samsung display suffered a loss in revenue last quarter, they aren’t doing well at all.

This is a cheap dig that has nothing to do with my point.

In fact, I'm not even sure why you brought it up or what it has to do with anything. Maybe you mistakenly assume I'm a Samsung supporter and want me to feel bad. I hate Samsung.

 

[bobtem]

Lotta talk about Apple waits to get it right. But then there's the notch...

 

[EdT]

Lotta talk about Apple waits to get it right. But then there's the notch...

Which may bother you but doesn't bother me.

 

[PickUrPoison]

Lotta talk about Apple waits to get it right. But then there's the notch...

What’s not right about the notch? It’s exactly what Apple wanted. They obviously could have had a full-width bezel like previous models, but instead they chose to add the extra display area in the corners, aka the “ears”.

There are some who wish Apple had left that area as unused bezel, but Apple disagrees. They decided it would be useful, and that they would rather have display that than dead space. They certainly would have tested both designs, and they decided on the notch ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

For some, the notch does offend their sense of symmetry (or they don’t like the design for other reasons) but it only seems to be a problem for non-owners. Those who have the X/XR/XS models don’t seem to have a problem with it; I suppose that makes sense, since those who buy it and don’t like it would return it! But yeah, Apple likes it just fine, and it’ll be there until they can innovate their way out of needing it. Could be two years, could be ten, who knows?