Samsung Galaxy Fold to Launch in Korea on Sept. 6, No Official U.S. Release Date Listed Yet
Photo: Sam Rutherford (Gizmodo)
Samsung’s beleaguered, $2,000 Galaxy Fold foldable smartphone has a new launch date in Korea: Sept. 6.
The Galaxy Fold was scheduled to launch in the U.S. in April, but Samsung indefinitely delayed its release after multiple reviewers quickly experienced issues including flickering screens and hinge bulges—though some of the issues were apparently caused by reviewers pulling off a thin plastic screen protector that looked like it was removable packaging material. It was actually critical to the device’s functioning. In July, Samsung announced it had made improvements to the Fold’s design that resolved the screen protector issue and made the device more durable, setting a launch window of September 2019.
In a post on the official Samsung blog, the company wrote that the Fold would go on sale in Korea on Friday, though it remained coy about when it would make its way to other markets including the U.S. and Europe:
Samsung Electronics today announced the launch of the Galaxy Fold—a completely new category of mobile technology—available in Korea on September 6, followed by select countries including France, Germany, Singapore, U.K., U.S., and more, in Cosmos Black and Space Silver. With a 5G-ready option in select countries, consumers will be able to unfold the future on the fastest network speeds available.
Advertisement
However, pre-registration for the phone went live on the Samsung website this week, indicating that the Korean launch is likely to be quickly followed by release elsewhere. In a separate post touting “premier” service for U.S. customers, Samsung wrote that it should be on the U.S. market in “coming weeks.”
Luckily for Samsung, despite the months of delays, it is still on track to beat its closest competition: Huawei’s Mate X foldable phone has also faced major delays, with Huawei saying its launch window is now between September to November 2019. Samsung itself has reportedly moved on to a second-generation device that is much more compact than the tablet-sized Fold, according to Bloomberg, and has contracted luxury designer Thom Browne to make it more stylish than its predecessor.
Advertisement
Gizmodo encountered no problems with its own review unit, which we found to be a seriously flawed but also seriously exciting first stab at a foldable handheld device. If you’re still on the fence about whether to bet on a Galaxy Fold, check out our review here for what kind of trade-offs to expect.
Correction: A previous version of this post identified the designer Samsung contracted to design its next foldable as Thom Yorke. That is the dude named Thom from Radiohead. We regret the error.
Advertisement
Powered by WPeMatico