Folding Phones: The Future of Smartphones?

Since the first smartphone came out, we have seen manufacturers upgrading the cameras, the display, the fingerprint sensors, and almost everything. But the only thing that remained unchanged was the structure: a glass slab that stayed there for 15 years.

Kudos to Samsung who went all in to create literally an all-new design for the already powerful smartphones.

A design that folds the glass screen of the phone in half, saving the space of pocket while giving the same big screen and sometimes bigger.

Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 5 has a bigger screen size similar to tablets when unfolded but it folds down to the same size as a normal smartphone. How great is that!?

I have been personally using it and my 4k Netflix-watching experience has never been better on my Fold 5 since connecting to blazing-fast Kinetic Internet Service. It is one of the most reliable ISPs in the US offering speeds up to a whopping 1 gig. With a cherry on top, you can stay connected on the go with the help of Kinetic Wi-Fi.

Anyways, let’s circle back to the Foldables. Even though it’s a great step forward and people seem to be interested. But when it comes to swiping their credit cards to purchase it, the interest doesn’t remain the same.

The sale of Foldables hasn’t been huge whether it’s from OnePlus or Samsung. So, the question revolves around: Do foldable phones really are the future of smartphones? Let’s find out.

Why Foldables?

Whether it is Samsung Z Flip, Fold or Google Pixel Fold, the question here is why the phone manufacturers spent their resources on something that is already tricky to create in the first place but also accompanies the risk of major failure.

Actually, it was none of that. Samsung was going to discontinue its previously hit Galaxy Note series with a series of Foldables. Samsung had the idea through the huge datasets of users that a foldable phone was needed by the consumers. So, they swooped in and to date have a 58% market share of Foldable smartphones.

And why not? Smartphones are growing bigger and bigger every year. It’s a hassle to carry an under 7-inch smartphone in your pocket. It’s better to just fold it down to a 4-inch device.

Samsung Z Flip phones have a small screen outside when folded that lets users see snippets of information like incoming messages, calls, and weather updates. On the other hand, Z Fold has a full-on display like a normal smartphone which can be used to take on calls and other stuff.

Z Fold when unfolded opens a whole new world of better utility. A bigger screen that is optimized for multi-tasking and lets you enjoy your favorite games on a bigger and better display.

Foldables have changed the way people use their phones. According to statistics, Foldable phones are being used more by the same users who used the regular ones. It is easy to just fold the phones halfway and place them anywhere without any aid. Some people like me use it for PowerPoint presentations and I should say it’s much easier to scroll through the slides on a big screen that can be held in the palm.

So, there are some uses that are being satisfied by Foldables hassle-free.

The Future?

Certainly, folding phones face some challenges when set in comparison to normal phones. But once they are overcome we may see masses using them.

These folding phones are yet limited to book-style and clamshell designs but there is a huge potential for them to improve. Xiaomi is working on a prototype for a sliding-screen phone. The design is complicated to build but it’s cool.

The first folding phone was launched by Samsung and it had a visible crease when in use. It was prone to breaking and the hinge had a notable space that doesn’t help it look like a premium phone and justify its high pricing. And here we are with the Fold 5 with a premium design with an almost invisible crease and better durability.

One of the areas where Foldables still lacks is their integration with Wearables. I know they can be connected but the experience isn’t as seamless as with other devices. It’s an area where they can still improve.

Last but not least, the enhanced productivity that the big screen of a foldable phone offers is invaluable. You still can do more on a folding phone than a normal phone but if the space on the screen is utilized more efficiently they can literally replace all the iPads and Samsung Galaxy Tabs.