Fast on the heels of a Weibo leak which claimed that Samsung’s foldable Galaxy X1 will arrive in H2 2017 comes another that suggests that “foldable phones” will be released in Q3 2017.
Unnamed sources have reportedly told The Korea Herald that “Samsung is expected to roll out more than 100,000 units of fold-out devices in the third quarter.”
There’s no name for the device just yet, but it’s said to be a “fold-out” device, meaning that the display stays on the outside when folded. When unfolded, it will expand to a 7-inch tablet sized device.
Samsung has apparently had the folding screen technology in place for years now, but has been wary of market response. Samsung’s decision to release the device this year might have been hastened by reports that LG is expected to release 100,000 foldable devices of its own in Q4 2017.
The Korea Herald claims that its sources suggest that LG’s folding display technology is far more advanced than Samsung’s, but they also add that LG might be more keen on selling the technology to its clients rather than integrate it into its own devices.
Samsung and LG have both been demoing folding display technology for many years now, most notably at various CES (Consumer Electronics Show) events.
Will 2017 finally be the year that foldable display technology goes mainstream?