In 2019, Samsung released its first foldable screen phone, the Galaxy Fold. As an extremely rare foldable smartphone on the market at the time, the Galaxy Fold successfully allowed Samsung to show off in the high-end market.
Ko Dong-jin, then CEO of Samsung's mobile division, handed over the report card of Samsung's first generation of folding screen phones at a special speech at CES 2020: 40-500,000 units. Although this number is not very impressive, considering its starting price of $1980, the Galaxy Fold is not too bad for profit.
Source: Samsung).
After 5 years, most mobile phone brands have gained in the segment of folding screens, but compared with the sales of straight smartphones, it is still far behind. In the final analysis, the price of folding screen phones is quite high, but the comprehensive experience will not be so far from straight smartphones, so it is naturally difficult to move towards true popularity.
Perhaps seeing consumers' pursuit of cost performance, Samsung finally decided to launch a more affordable folding screen mobile phone this year.
According to The Elec, Samsung will launch a foldable screen phone positioned in the mid-range in 2024Galaxy Z Fold Fe, released with the Galaxy Z Fold 6. At the same time, Samsung Display also plans to use inkjet printing technology to make the bezels of the new panels, aiming to reduce the manufacturing cost of folding screen phones.
Aiming at the mid-range folding screen mobile phone market, what new tricks will Samsung?
Samsung and Apple are both regulars in the world's best-selling mobile phone lists, but the difference is that Apple's models on the list are usually contemporary flagship iPhones, while Samsung's low-end A series or M series are in the middle and low end. As for Samsung's S series flagship models, although they are occasionally on the list, they are not ranked high, which is also the key reason why Samsung can't beat Apple in the high-end market.
Source: gsmarena).
Since it is impossible to compete head-on with the iPhone in the field of straight smartphones, it is better to find another way and let the folding screen mobile phone occupy the high-end market. As a result, Samsung launched its first folding screen mobile phone Galaxy Fold in 2019 and became a leader in one fell swoop, DSCC data shows that in the third quarter of 2021, Samsung Galaxy Z Fold3 Galaxy Z Flip3 accounted for 93% of the global folding screen mobile phone market share, with comprehensive shipments of more than 2 million units.
In the domestic market, Samsung's folding screen mobile phones are also on the list, and as of the third quarter of 2023, the data still has 139% market share.
In the folding screen market, Samsung's position is relatively stable, but its category on this track is relatively scarce, mainly high-end, whether it is Galaxy Z Fold or Galaxy Z Flip, ** are higher than competing products in the same period. Based on this, Samsung needs a folding screen mobile phone with a slightly lower positioning and outstanding cost performance to stimulate consumer demand.
Source: Samsung).
Samsung's upcoming iteration of the Galaxy Z Fold 6 is equipped with a flagship three-piece set, which is the Snapdragon 8 Gen3 + UFS 40+LPDDR5X combination,The pricing is estimated to be the same as the previous generation,12999Yuan for sale。
If the rumored Galaxy Z Fold FE is positioned lower than this model, then there is a high probability that it will be equipped with the Snapdragon 8 Gen2 mobile platform, and the price is also within 10,000 yuan. However, Samsung's "affordable" folding screen mobile phone needs to compete head-on with Xiaomi MIX Fold 3, Honor Magic V2 and other folding screen models released last year, and the pressure is still relatively large.
It can only be said that since the development of folding screen mobile phones, hinge technology, display technology, and assembly technology have reached a stable and mature stage, and it is the general trend to launch more cost-effective models to "popularize". Last year, Honor has already made a demonstration with Magic VS 2, with a price starting at 6999 yuan, which directly puts folding screen phones and straight smartphones on the same level.
Looking back on 2023, there is only one keyword in the folding screen mobile phone track: volume.
Different from the volume of straight smartphones, the current goal of folding screen mobile phones is to knock down the first, first so that most consumers can afford and are willing to try, and then consider how to improve performance, image, texture and many other peripheral configurations.
In this regard, Honor and Moto are at the forefront.
Source: Glory).
Last year, Honor released three folding screen mobile phones in one go, which is the most active brand in the folding screen track among Chinese mobile phone manufacturers. Magic V2 at the beginning of the year, the main all-round, flagship, the price is also slightly higher, starting at 8999 yuan; The subsequent release of Magic VS 2 focuses on thinness, texture, and cost performance, and the pricing is also very reasonable, as long as 6999 yuan. Magic V Purse, on the other hand, is responsible for taking the fashion route and stimulating the female consumer market.
Completing the layout from the three aspects of flagship, cost performance, and fashion, Honor's record in the folding screen market is also surprising. According to a report by market research agency Counterpoint Research, Honor's share of the domestic folding screen mobile phone market has increased from 4% to 16%, ranking from 6th to 3rd, and it is the fastest growing folding screen mobile phone brand in China. The outstanding performance in the folding screen market has also helped Honor achieve relatively bright results in 2023.
Source: moto).
And Moto is even more radical, last year released the Moto Razr 40 series portrait folding screen mobile phone, of which the Razr 40 starting price is only 3599 yuan, and the Razr 40 Ultra is 4699 yuan, both below 5000 yuan. According to Lenovo's official data, the Moto folding screen will achieve a 2135% increase in shipments in 2023, and the sales volume will increase by 21 times. (Of course, the growth rate is usually unusually high, and it is often because the base is too low).
Judging from market feedback, consumers actually have a strong interest and strong demand for folding screens, butThe high price has hindered the inclusiveness of folding screen mobile phones, after all, they are now talking about "consumption downgrade".Perhaps this is the core reason why Samsung plans to launch an affordable folding screen - to quickly seize the potential mid-range market.
Source: Lei Technology).
In addition to the ** battle on the surface, another focus of the folding screen is "daily use". In 2023, vivo X Fold 2, OPPO Find N3, and Huawei Mate X5 are all building folding screen mobile phones with the idea of flagship, even if they do not have the best advantages, but the performance, image, and texture do not have any shortcomings, and even provide more interactive solutions that are convenient for mobile office, so that consumers can feel that the folding screen mobile phone can also be a real flagship machine, so that the folding screen will not be just a spare machine for early adopters, but the main daily flagship.
Either way, it points to a clear future - the folding screen mobile phone market will only be bigger than the big one.
As Lei Tech (ID: Leitech) said in the 2023 annual summary of the folding screen mobile phone market: "The folding screen is not a fabricated demand out of thin air, behind it is the user's pursuit of a larger screen portable mobile device." "In fact, there is still a very broad market space for such demand.
In the early days of the birth of folding screen mobile phones, limited by technical costs, it is often difficult to set the best products within the scope of popularity, and with the gradual maturity of technology and the determination of market demand, folding screen mobile phones, which once symbolized high-end, should also go to the mid-end market and achieve inclusiveness.
Source: Samsung).
Therefore, it is not surprising that Samsung launched a more affordable folding screen mobile phone, after all, its position in the high-end folding screen mobile phone market has stabilized, and it is a reasonable choice to expand its influence to other market ranges. Next, we just have to wait for the arrival of the rumored Galaxy Z Fold Fe and look forward to the folding screen phone shining in 2024.
The 2024 Spring Festival of the Year of the Dragon "Science and Technology Welcomes the Year of the Dragon, AI Celebrates the Spring Festival" special series co-produced by Lei Technology's MCN account (Lei Technology, Xiaolei Beep, Tram Tong, Value Research Institute, Luo Chao Pro) is continuing to output content, welcome to subscribe and pay attention to Lei Technology (ID: Leitech) and other platforms.