Update (July 25, 12:45 pm ET): Updated to clarify that the industry shipped 10 million foldable phones in 2021, not Samsung.
What you need to know
- Samsung is holding its next Galaxy Unpacked on August 10.
- Samsung's Tim Roh discusses the company's growth in the foldable phone market.
- Roh says the Galaxy Z Flip series accounted for 70% of its foldable sales in 2021.
Samsung is gearing up for its next Galaxy Unpacked event, where the company will share its next-generation foldable smartphones. TM Roh, president and head of Samsung's MX Business, has taken a moment to discuss Samsung's inspiration and highlights of its foldable phones leading to now.
"We saw an opportunity not only to design a new shape but also to create new experiences that had never been possible with a smartphone before," he says in a blog post. "Overcoming many technological hurdles, we successfully introduced the first-ever foldable smartphone in 2019 and have changed the future of our industry ever since."
Roh says that the industry shipped nearly 10 million foldable phones in 2021, marking a 300% increase from the year prior and further reinforcing Samsung's goal of making foldable phones mainstream. Samsung was no doubt the leader in these sales, with analysts predicting the company would dominate the foldable market for years to come.
Samsung's most popular foldable? Roh says Samsung's clamshell foldable like the Galaxy Z Flip 3 accounted for 70% of its Galaxy foldable sales in 2021. That's not too surprising given the lower price point and more stylish design of the device. Near the end of 2021, Samsung boasted that Z Flip 3 sales were exceeding the company's expectations. Roh expects demand for foldable to increase as the company prepares to launch its next-generation devices.
"At our upcoming Unpacked on August 10th, you'll see that the impact of our innovation is not only about what technology can do. It's about what you can do. We've once again taken our inspiration from the most important source — Galaxy users — to push the limits of what's possible."
Galaxy Unpacked will occur on August 10 at 6 AM PT/ 9 AM ET, when Samsung is expected to launch the Galaxy Z Fold 4 and Galaxy Z Flip 4, along with new earbuds and smartwatches. In the lead-up to the event, Samsung is giving fans a chance to reserve its upcoming devices and earn up to $200 in Samsung credit when preorders open.
