Suspected Screen Breaks, Samsung Postponed the Folding Phone Conference

By Carrie Tsai,  Last Updated: April 23, 2019

On April 23, Samsung issued a statement saying that in order to fully evaluate the feedback of the reviewers and conduct further internal testing, it was decided to postpone the release of Galaxy Fold to improve product integrity. The release date will be announced in a few weeks.

The price of Samsung Galaxy Fold in North America is US$1980. In addition to its foldable shape (4.6-inch external screen and 7.3-inch internal screen), the Galaxy Fold is also equipped with the Snapdragon 855 chip, which is the first 512GB UFS 3.0. Flash memory, 4380mAh battery.

Samsung said preliminary findings suggest that the screen problems reported by the assessors may be related to the hinge collisions exposed at the top and bottom. In another case, substances found inside the device affect the performance of the display.

Samsung states: " We will take corresponding measures to strengthen the protection of the display, and will also explain to consumers in more detail how to use and maintain the display, including the protective layer. "

Samsung is pushing back this week’s planned public launch of its highly anticipated, $2,000 folding phone after reports that reviewers’ phones were breaking.

Samsung was scheduled to hold a Galaxy Flod conference in Hong Kong, China on April 23 and in Shanghai on the 24th. Earlier, according to Xinhua News Agency, the US media, which tried Samsung's new folding screen mobile phone cover in advance, recently spit out the problem of the mobile phone display screen.

In response, Samsung responded that some of the damage may be caused by the user removing the protective layer on the display, but indicating that the cause of each failed machine will be thoroughly investigated.

Samsung confirmed last week that the layer was meant to stay on. But that didn’t explain why many reviewers saw the phone’s inside screens break.

An early inspection showed there could be issues when pressure is put on the exposed areas of the hinges that open and close the phone, Samsung said in a statement announcing the launch delay on Monday. It also found an issue where “substances found inside the device affected the display performance”.

In addition, the Galaxy Fold folding screen phone was originally scheduled to be launched in the United States on the 26th, but it is speculated that Samsung may also postpone the launch time of the new machine in the United States. The Galaxy Fold folding screen phone is expected to be available in South Korea and China in May.

Regarding the durability and lifespan of folding screen mobile phones, the outside world has been showing concern. In the early stage, the yield is not high, mass production is not possible, and there are problems such as component upgrades, mobile phone structures such as folding hinges, and software interaction design. In addition, the high price of the folding screen mobile phone, whether the experience is optimized or not, also affects the degree of acceptance by the market.

Folding phones have not yet fully started, but the trend has been achieved and is expected to be high. After all, the development of flexible screens represents the advancement of technology, not only mobile phones, but more applications in the future, in cars and smart wear.