A decade after launching its ‘Galaxy’ smartphone series, Samsung Electronics has unveiled a new form of the ubiquitous device — a phone that seamlessly turns into a tablet — to create some new excitement in the rather saturated global smartphone market.
At an event in San Francisco on Wednesday, Samsung unveiled the Galaxy Fold, its long-awaited foldable smartphone.
“The size of our screens is still fundamentally limited by the size of our devices until now,” said Justin Denison, Samsung’s Senior Vice President of Product Marketing. “With the Galaxy Fold, we are creating a new dimension for your phone and your life. We are giving you a device that doesn’t just define the category, it defies category.”
When closed, the Galaxy Fold works just like a normal smartphone does. When opened, however, the Fold doubles into an expansive tablet. The device is designed for the impatient multi-taskers because users can run three apps at the same time and continuously use the apps while moving from phone to tablet. The Galaxy Fold is slated to go on sale in late April. It will cost nearly $2,000. That price tag caused sticker shock at the event, eliciting gasps and some grumbling among the audience. But it appears the Galaxy Fold is in keeping with Samsung’s aim to generate buzz for the smartphone market, while also aiming for the market’s high end, where Apple is the leader.
“For those who say everything possible has already been done,” said DJ Koh, President, and CEO of Samsung’s IT and Mobile Communications Division. “I say open your mind and get ready for the dawn of a new mobile era.”
Apart from the Samsung Galaxy Fold, Samsung also opened 3 retail outlets in the US to steadily compete with Apple and win the smartphone market.
Analysts and techies around the world are now looking forward to trying the all-new Samsung Galaxy Fold, and gauge whether or not it will be a success.
