There is one thing that all foldable phones out there have in common: they are outrageously priced. This could be attributed to years of research and development and use of novel components. It apparently took Samsung
nearly a decade to commercialize the idea and even the dual-screen Microsoft Surface took five years to make.
The cost to make these phones is apparently so high that Huawei
lost between $60 million and $70 million on the Mate Xs. The good news is that as these vendors make technological breakthroughs and scale up production, we can expect prices to go down. In fact, Samsung is reportedly on it already.
SamMobile claims that the company is working on an affordable foldable smartphone. It apparently carries the model number SM-F415 and not much is known about it at the moment except that it will come with 64GB and 128GB storage options and will be available in the colors blue, green, and black.
It doesn’t look like the information comes from a reputable source so take this report with a pinch of salt.
Will the budget foldable phone cost less than the rumored $900 Galaxy Fold Lite?
At $1,380, Samsung’s second bendable handset, the Galaxy Z Flip costs $600 less than the OG Fold which launched for $1,980. The Motorola Razr is another relatively reasonable foldable phone with a price tag of $1,499. The trade-off is that it offers mid-tier specs.
Samsung will reportedly launch a
stripped-down version of the Galaxy Z Fold 2 in 2021 which will cost around $900. Although this would make it much more affordable than the Fold 2, it will still be out of reach for most consumers.
In short, it’s evident that Samsung is eager to have foldables available at different price points.
To be a mainstream device, the SM-F415 would have to go a even lower than $900 and this could lead to various compromises.
So, if Samsung is indeed planning to release a budget foldable phone, expect it to have humble core specs, a mid-tier camera, and a minuscule cover display.
