By now, it's no longer a secret that Samsung is developing a Galaxy smartphone with a foldable display. Once released, it will probably be the most radical device Samsung has offered in the last 10 years.
A radical phone, however, comes with a radical tag price. A report from South Korea has surfaced this week, claiming this smartphone, nicknamed Galaxy X across rumor circles, will debut early next year and cost KRW 2 million or about $1,800.
Suppose this report is accurate, it means Samsung's foldable smartphone would cost almost twice as much as the iPhone X, which retails for $1,000.
Samsung's Foldable Phone Will Launch In 2019
The report says Samsung's subcontractors and parts affiliates will start delivering hardware components for assembly beginning later this year. The retail launch is expected in early 2019.
It's hard to guess how far into development Samsung is at the moment. However, if it already has an assembly schedule as the report alleges, then it's safe to say the technology is ready.
Samsung Foldable Display Specs
Aside from endless concept images from various artists, there's really no telling as to what this foldable phone is going to look like. Rumors present highly contradictory claims, however, what appears to be a common denominator from those reports suggest that the phone will allegedly have a 7.2 or 7.3-inch OLED display that shrinks to 4.5 inches when folded.
CES 2019 Debut?
Shinhan Financial analyst Park Hyung-woo says prototypes will be shown at next year's CES event, which happens January. However, it will only be shown to partners and retailers, not to the general public. Park also claims to have details on the phone's design:
"This new device is an interesting thing as it will have two inside panels and one outside panel with the two inside panels forming the 7.3-inch screen when the phone is unfolded."
On its part, Samsung remains tight-lipped about the device in question, but the company did confirm its existence back in 2017. At the time, Samsung said it was working on a release date. In addition, Samsung spokesman Kim Choon-gon says development remains on track for a device with a "true foldable display."
There are several events next year Samsung could use as an opportunity to debut its foldable smartphone, the most obvious one being the Mobile World Congress. The MWC typically happens near the end of February each year.
Would you buy a $1,800 smartphone? Is a foldable display worth that much? As always, if you have anything to share, feel free to sound off in the comments section below.
