Last April 2019, Mark Gurman got his hands on a review unit of Samsung’s Galaxy Fold, Samsung’s newest foldable phone at that time. Unfortunately, after only two days, the phone became completely broken and unusable. In other words, the phone began breaking before it was even released.
Fast forward to this day. Samsung has reportedly done redesigning the phone.
The world’s largest smartphone maker is now in the final stages of producing a commercial version but can’t yet pin down a date to begin sales, people familiar with the matter said, asking not to be identified describing an internal effort. Samsung pulled the device after several publications including Bloomberg News reported problems with test versions, such as screen malfunctions that emerged after a film on the display was peeled off.
Korea’s biggest company is trying to move past yet another product faux pas. It has now stretched the protective film to wrap around the entire screen and flow into the outer bezels so it would be impossible to peel off by hand, said the people, who have seen the latest versions. It re-engineered the hinge, pushing it slightly upward from the screen (it’s now flush with the display) to help stretch the film further when the phone opens.
That tension makes the film feel harder and more a natural part of the device rather than a detachable accessory, they added. The consequent protrusion, almost imperceptible to the naked eye, may help reduce the chance of a crease developing in the middle of the screen over time, one of the people said.
Will Samsung be successful this time around?
(Image Credit: Jeenah Moon/ Bloomberg)