Samsung Denies Rumours of Affordable Foldable Smartphones: Report

Samsung has released five iterations of the Galaxy Z foldable flagships.

Written by Nithya P Nair, Edited by Siddharth Suvarna | Updated: 15 November 2023 09:43 IST

Samsung Denies Rumours of Affordable Foldable Smartphones: Report

Photo Credit: Samsung

The Galaxy Z Flip 5 and Galaxy Z Fold 5 were launched just a few months ago

Highlights

Samsung denies plans for a budget foldable smartphone
Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 5 price in India starts at Rs. 1,54,999
Samsung has released five iterations of the Galaxy Z Fold flagships

Samsung's 2024 lineup was recently speculated to include budget foldable smartphones. The first affordable foldable from the South Korean tech giant was said to cost around $400 to $500 (roughly Rs. 33,000 to Rs. 41,000), similar to a mid-range Galaxy A series smartphone. The company has now reportedly denied rumours of a mid-range Samsung foldable phone. Samsung was said to release Fan Edition versions of the foldable phone after the launch of the Galaxy Z Fold 6 and Galaxy Z Flip 6 next year.

As per a report by Korea JoongAng Daily, a Samsung spokesperson confirmed that the company doesn't have plans for a “mid-range” foldable. “We don't plan to manufacture foldable smartphones that are priced in the midrange, and the latest rumours are groundless,” the report quotes the spokesperson as saying.

Samsung was also rumoured to launch a cheaper Galaxy Z foldable phone called the Galaxy Z FE (Fan Edition) after the launch of Galaxy Z Fold 6 and Galaxy Z Flip 6 and the spokesperson rejected the rumour saying, "there's nothing decided on the matter".

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Recent rumours said that Samsung was developing a lower-cost foldable set to arrive in 2024. A report by market research firm TrendForce claimed that Samsung will introduce more competitively priced foldable phones to the mid-range market next year to help reduce price barriers and make foldable phones more accessible. Further, a tipster opined that the foldable could be priced as low as $400 to $500.

The South Korean brand has released five iterations of the Galaxy Z foldable flagships. The Galaxy Z Flip 5 and Galaxy Z Fold 5 were launched just a few months ago. The price of the Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 5 starts at $999(roughly Rs. 82,000), while the Galaxy Z Fold 5 has an initial price tag of $1,799 (roughly Rs. 1,47,000).

Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 5 price in India starts at Rs. 1,54,999 for the base 12GB RAM + 256GB storage configuration and Galaxy Z Flip 5 starts at Rs. 99,999 for the 8GB RAM + 256GB storage model.

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Both the Galaxy Z Fold 5 and Galaxy Z Flip 5 are powered by Qualcomm's custom Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 Mobile Platform for Galaxy and feature a new Flex Hinge. They ship with One UI 5.1.1 based on Android 13 and have an IPX8 rated build for water resistance.

Is the Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 5 the best foldable phone you can buy in India right now? We discuss the company's new clamshell-style foldable handset on the latest episode of Orbital, the Gadgets 360 podcast. Orbital is available on Spotify, Gaana, JioSaavn, Google Podcasts, Apple Podcasts, Amazon Music and wherever you get your podcasts.

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Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 5

REVIEW
KEY SPECS
NEWS

Design
Display
Software
Performance
Battery Life
Camera
Value for Money

Good
Very good build quality, IPX8 rated
Well-optimised software
Very good system and gaming performance
All-day battery life
Reliable cameras

Bad
Expensive
Still feels bulky

Read detailed Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 5 review

Display (Primary) 7.60-inch

Processor Snapdragon 8 Gen 2

Front Camera 10-megapixel + 4-megapixel

Rear Camera 50-megapixel + 12-megapixel + 10-megapixel

RAM 12GB

Storage 256GB, 512GB, 1TB

Battery Capacity 4400mAh

OS Android 13

Resolution 2176x1812 pixels

More Samsung mobiles Samsung mobiles price in India

Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 5

REVIEW
KEY SPECS
NEWS

Design
Display
Software
Performance
Battery Life
Camera
Value for Money

Good
Vibrant displays, folding display is durable
Compact design when folded
Top-tier performance
Fast wireless charging for a foldable
Water-resistant design
Good quality primary camera

Bad
Cover screen functionality is limited
Battery barely lasts a day
Relatively slow wired charging
No macro camera

Read detailed Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 5 review

Display (Primary) 6.70-inch

Processor Snapdragon 8 Gen 2

Front Camera 10-megapixel

Rear Camera 12-megapixel + 12-megapixel + 10-megapixel

RAM 8GB

Storage 256GB, 512GB

Battery Capacity 3700mAh

OS Android 13

More Samsung mobiles Samsung mobiles price in India

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Further reading: Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 6, Galaxy Z Fold 5, Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 5, Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 5, Samsung

Nithya P Nair

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Nithya P Nair is a journalist with more than five years of experience in digital journalism. She specialises in business and technology beats. A foodie at heart, Nithya loves exploring new places (read cuisines) and sneaking in Malayalam movie dialogues to spice up conversations. More