Samsung Foldable Smartphone Could Be Unveiled This November

It was previously rumored that Samsung’s foldable smartphone might arrive in early 2019. However, the company’s mobile division CEO, DJ Koh, has revealed that Samsung might actually unveil the device later this year.

In an interview with CNBC, Koh said that “it’s time to deliver” a foldable device. He also revealed that consumer surveys carried out by Samsung show that there is definitely a market for such a device. The CEO also talked about the functionalities of a foldable smartphone, but he declined to provide any specifics on Samsung’s upcoming device.

“You can use most of the uses ... on foldable status. But when you need to browse or see something, then you may need to unfold it. But even unfolded, what kind of benefit does that give compared to the tablet? If the unfolded experience is the same as the tablet, why would they (consumers) buy it?,” Koh told CNBC last week during the IFA 2018 conference. “So every device, every feature, every innovation should have a meaningful message to our end customer. So when the end customer uses it, (they think) 'wow, this is the reason Samsung made it’.”

The Samsung mobile division CEO then revealed that the South Korean giant might officially unveil the foldable smartphone during the company’s Developer Conference in San Francisco this coming November. However, Koh stopped short of revealing any information on when exactly customers will be able to buy the foldable smartphone. He also admitted that the development process for the device is “complicated,” but Samsung has “nearly concluded.”

It was previously rumored that Samsung could be launching its foldable smartphone in January during CES 2019. It’s possible that the South Korean company will unveil the device this year and just release it in January, but that’s just speculation at this point. It would be a huge surprise if Samsung releases the foldable smartphone this year because it has just released the Galaxy Note 9.

Not much is known about Samsung’s foldable smartphone, but it was previously rumored to be called the Galaxy F. Rumors also suggest that the device may have a folding 7.3-inch display, which can be usable when folded in different ways, according to Android Authority.

Foldable smartphones are expected to be the trend in 2019 and Samsung isn’t the only phone maker developing one. Chinese smartphone makers Xiaomi and Oppo are both rumored to be working on their own foldable smartphones. Meanwhile, Huawei is planning to beat Samsung to the punch by planning to release its folding smartphone sometime in late 2018.