Are foldable phones and tablets cool again? That will depend on Samsung, LG, TCL and the other device manufacturers.
But after seeing the Samsung Flex Hybrid, which folds and slides, this week at CES 2023, I’m starting to get excited once again about cutting-edge technology that hasn’t yet taken off seriously. While the concept model remained in the hands of a Samsung employee, seeing it for myself renewed my hope in the possibilities we have yet to explore with screens that can fold, bend, slide and roll.
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As someone who has used some of these early devices from Samsung, Motorola, Oppo and others, I’ll admit to being a bit disillusioned with the appeal of foldables in recent years. The Flex Hybrid and other prototypes from Samsung’s display division may have changed that.
There were scrollables, foldables, and even some devices that used multiple technologies, and any of them could appear in the not-too-distant future. The Flex Hybrid is a foldable tablet that has an extra screen that pops out, with the demo giving an example of watching a soccer game in full screen on the tablet before pulling out the extra screen to see stats and other information.
Other prototype models, like the Flex S, can be folded multiple times, giving you a smartphone-sized screen when closed and a large tablet when open. This is something straight out of HBO’s Westworld.
Samsung Display’s Flex S looks like a tablet screen straight out of HBO’s Westworld.
David Katzmaier/CNET
The new screens seem to bring life to the folding era, which got off to a rocky start with an original Samsung Galaxy Fold that had well-documented problems in 2019. Subsequent models like the recent Z Flip 4 and Z Fold 4 have shown as much. of promise and desire, but neither has caught on despite being pretty great devices – we’re talking about 1.1% of the global smartphone market share for foldables, according to research firm IDC .
However, the appeal of foldable devices is growing among buyers as prices gradually drop and refinements are made, and IDC expects foldable phone shipments to reach 41.5 million units by 2026, compared with 13.5 million units in 2022.
Again, these prototypes are not meant to be finished products, but rather showcases of the technology the company has been working on. It’s also developed by Samsung Display, which is a separate part of Samsung than the Samsung Electronics unit that makes and sells phones, tablets, computers, TVs, and other electronic devices (although the two also work together).
Samsung Display is a supplier, and its screens are found in a lot of products not made by the South Korean tech giant. So while Samsung is making the displays, it’s quite possible that a different company could bring some of these to market.
“These are all prototypes, concept devices, obviously,” says John Jacobs, vice president of sales and marketing at Samsung Display. “We’re not going out to build millions [of these displays] until we have customers.” Jacobs hopes those customers, from phone or computer companies to automakers looking for displays for their next cars, will see the concepts and be inspired.
“That’s what we want to do here is help, if you will … enable creativity and imagination.”
The burden is on other companies to take these screens and build work products around them. Although Samsung is demonstrating the technology at CES, it did not allow media attendees to pick up and use the prototypes on their own. Instead, the company had staff members running the demos.
But unlike so many products and concepts at CES, Samsung seems ready for these displays to take the next step to becoming a real product. In fact, Jacobs doesn’t think we’ll have to wait too long.
“I think [in] 2024, especially multiple devices, becomes much more of a possibility.”
Samsung and others have a lot more work to do to get there, but I can’t wait.