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posted by martyb on Wednesday February 12 2020, @09:10AM   Printer-friendly
from the call-me-maybe dept.

Samsung Announces The Galaxy Z Flip: Foldable Phone With Glass

Today Samsung announced the new Galaxy S20, S20+ and S20 Ultra, but the regular flagship phones weren't the only devices announce today as we've also seen the unveiling of the new Galaxy Z Flip. The new Z Flip is Samsung's second foldable phone to market after Galaxy Fold, but takes a new approach in terms of design as it comes in a new clamshell design with only a single primary screen.

[...] What makes the Z Flip extremely impressive though is its display. It's not the first flexible display out there, and it's relatively average with a 2636 x 1080 resolution. What makes it special, is that this is the very first display on the market that has an ultra-thin glass cover on it – yes, it's a foldable glass screen. The implications here are huge when compared to a plastic foldable screen, and the glass should be significantly more scratch resistant than plastic alternatives, making this a much more viable option when it comes to long-term durability of the phone.

Samsung's hinge mechanism was designed in such as way that it minimises dust ingress into the gears of the system. What's also special is that the phone clicks in at different angles such as 120°, instead of being freely flexible at any angle.

The phone is $1380/1480€.

Corning is making the smaller, outward-facing secondary display, but the origin of the "Ultra Thin Glass" is not yet known:

Besides the Snapdragon 855+, we have a 6.7-inch OLED display with a resolution of 2636x1080. Instead of the delicate plastic of the Galaxy Fold, the Z Flip is rumored to be covered by an "Ultra Thin Glass." We know companies are working on flexible glass for these folding smartphone displays. The industry leader is Corning, the maker of the "Gorilla Glass" cover that adorns nearly every high-end smartphone, but Corning's bendable glass solution is not on the market yet. One report out of Germany is that Samsung's partner is Schott, a German glass producer.

Also at VentureBeat.

Related: Samsung Announces the Galaxy Fold, a Phone-Tablet Hybrid Device
Corning Working on Flexible Glass for Devices
You're Folding It Wrong: Tech Reviewers Break Samsung Galaxy Fold after Just Days of Use
Samsung Galaxy Fold Delayed Indefinitely Following Reports of Broken Displays


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  • (Score: 2) by FatPhil on Wednesday February 12 2020, @01:33PM (3 children)

    by FatPhil (863) <pc-soylentNO@SPAMasdf.fi> on Wednesday February 12 2020, @01:33PM (#957176) Homepage
    It does remind me of the Razr from a decade back - clamshell, but aiming for thinness. Looks sexy, but that price is outragious. I'm not sure what niche the device fills, but I'm gonna channel Spike Lee here and say "what you are calling a big wide screen ain't big enough or wide enough to actually give an even half-decent media watching experience".
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  • (Score: 4, Funny) by choose another one on Wednesday February 12 2020, @04:37PM (2 children)

    by choose another one (515) Subscriber Badge on Wednesday February 12 2020, @04:37PM (#957231)

    Price might be outrageous, but it looks like it'll about the same as the current Moto Razr.

    Niche? - the flip phone format has some big big inherent advantages, snap it shut and the screen is instantly protected, throw it in a pocket with your keys, it'll fit, in fact you may well have to fish around in the pocket to find it.

    I still do miss the flip phones I had in the early part of this century. I'm not paying a grand plus for a new one, but there are probably plenty people like me but with way more money (or less sense). That's the market, well that and old school trekkies. Kirk out [one handed snap close].

    • (Score: 2) by FatPhil on Wednesday February 12 2020, @10:07PM

      by FatPhil (863) <pc-soylentNO@SPAMasdf.fi> on Wednesday February 12 2020, @10:07PM (#957427) Homepage
      I loved my V60 back in the early noughties. https://www.gsmarena.com/motorola_v60-298.php
      Of course, there's the internet now, and my phone is an essential part of that, so the above won't do any more. I'm on a resistive touchscreen presently which scratches very easily, and am running out of spare parts. No phone fits my personal needs nowadays, so I just hope it/they will last.
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    • (Score: 2) by PartTimeZombie on Thursday February 13 2020, @12:04AM

      by PartTimeZombie (4827) on Thursday February 13 2020, @12:04AM (#957492)

      A quick search show I had one of the original Motorola RAZRs, which was a pretty good phone. The Kirk out! snap made me very cool, at the time. (Or not)

      From the reviews I have seen the new Motorola RAZR is a terrible device though.