This looks to be a big year for foldable phones, with the Google Pixel Fold expected to land and OnePlus also working on its first foldable. But it'll potentially be less significant for Samsung, because the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 5 will reportedly be very similar to the Galaxy Z Fold 4. We might, however, see much bigger changes with the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 6.
This is according to leaker @Tech_Reve (opens in new tab) (via Android Police (opens in new tab)), who claimed – in response to a leak about the Z Fold 5 having near identical dimensions to the Z Fold 4 – that the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 6 will have a “major form factor change.”
They didn’t get more specific than that, but did say they’d recommend waiting for the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 6 rather than buying the Z Fold 5.
This is because Samsung will keep the current form factor until Fold 5,but there will be a major form factor change starting with the Fold 6.I would recommend waiting for the Fold 6 rather than buying the Fold 5. https://t.co/2YxBajKlvbApril 25, 2023
We’d take this leak with a pinch of salt though, because while the source has accurately leaked things in the past, they don’t have an extensive track record yet. This is also extremely early for Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 6 leaks, with the phone not likely to land until July or August of 2024.
Still, with the main changes to the Galaxy Z Fold 5 reportedly just being the hinge construction and the chipset, and the Pixel Fold supposedly having a high price, this might not be the year to buy a top-end foldable, so it could be worth waiting to see if there is any truth to this Z Fold 6 leak.
What form could the Galaxy Z Fold 6 take?
This leak does leave us wondering just what the form factor change could be though. One possibility is that the shape will be changed to allow for a wider cover screen, like you’ll find on the Oppo Find N2.
This would make the cover screen more like a normal smartphone display, whereas the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 4 has a narrow cover screen that’s a bit more awkward to use.
Samsung actually made the cover screen slightly wider on that phone than on the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 3, so the company's clearly aware of the issue, but it’s still not wide enough.
Alternatively, if this really is a “major” form factor change, then perhaps Samsung will take inspiration from the likes of the current Huawei Mate Xs 2, which has just one big foldable screen, but remains usable when folded in half, as the display is on the outside rather than the inside. We doubt that though, as it’s a design that even Huawei has moved away from (judging by the recent release of the Huawei Mate X3).
We’ve also seen Samsung experiment with other foldable form factors in concept form, including a much bigger one that opens into more of a laptop, and some slidable and rollable concepts.
These, we’d think, are too much of a change for Samsung to replace the current form factor with though, and in the case of the rollable and slidable options, the Fold name wouldn’t really fit.
As such, our best guess for now is simply a change in aspect ratio to allow for a wider cover screen, but whatever the change, it could make Samsung’s best foldable phone contender of 2024 a lot more exciting than the upcoming 2023 model.
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