Bendgate 2.0: Samsung’s $2,000 foldable phone is already breaking

[Karlston]

Samsung's fancy folding OLED panels are dying after just a few days.

Samsung's futuristic Galaxy Fold is launching this month, and the device has already made its way to a select group of reviewers and influencers. During the run-up to the device's launch, there were concerns about the durability of the folding display, and now after just a few days with the public, the device is already experiencing problems. There are numerous reports of Samsung's $2,000 device breaking after a single day, sometimes due to poor durability, other times due to user error.

 

First up, we have a report from Dieter Bohn at The Verge, who had a piece of debris get under the Galaxy Fold display (possibly through the hinge?) and press up against the back of the display. In addition to causing an unsightly bump in the OLED panel, it eventually pressed against the display enough to break it, killing a few horizontal and vertical rows of pixels.

 

Since the Galaxy Fold folds in half, the flexible OLED display quickly forms a visible crease in the middle. People were worried about the durability of folding a display in half like this, and it looks like Steve Kovach of CNBC has experienced everyone's worst fear: his Galaxy Fold display broke right along the fold crease—all the pixels in the folding area went black and the screen started flickering like crazy.

 

We've also seen some reviewers peel off a layer of the display on purpose, thinking it was a removable protective layer that many phones ship with. Bloomberg's Mark Gurman shared a gruesome photo of a removed layer of display film, saying, "The phone comes with this protective layer/film. Samsung says you are not supposed to remove it. I removed it, not knowing you’re not supposed to (consumers won’t know either). It appeared removable in the left corner, so I took it off. I believe this contributed to the problem." The "problem" Gurman is referring to is his totally dead Galaxy Fold display. After removing the layer of the display, first the left half of the display died, then the display completely died.

 

YouTuber Marques Brownlee also tried peeling off this protective layer, thinking it was just a display protector for shipping. After picking at the layout a bit, Brownlee says "the display spazzed and blacked out. Started over with a replacement."

 

 

Right now we're at the very edge of viability for folding smartphones, and the Galaxy Fold is the first device from a serious manufacturer that is reaching the hands of the masses. For this first year, foldables are definitely first-generation, early adopter devices, with delicate plastic screen covers, visible display creases, radical new hinge designs, and a variety of competing form factors in development. So far Samsung has been suspiciously protective of the Galaxy Fold, and despite announcing it in February alongside the Galaxy S10, people haven't gotten to even touch the device until this week.

 

The early hype for the Galaxy Fold seems to have struck a chord with consumers, with Samsung.com citing "overwhelming demand" and selling out of Galaxy Fold pre-orders in just a day. Devices ship to the general public April 26, so if the final production units have the same problems, we'll see a lot more reports then. So far, Samsung has not commented on these durability problems. Place your bets on where this issue will rank among exploding smartphones or S-Pens jamming in devices.

 

Source: Bendgate 2.0: Samsung’s $2,000 foldable phone is already breaking (Ars Technica)

 

Poster's note: The article contains an image slideshow. Please visit the above link to view it.

[The AchieVer]

Samsung's folding phone breaks for reviewers

By Dave LeeNorth America technology reporter

 

 

 

Image copyrightSAMSUNG

Image captionSamsung's folding phone was shown off for the first time earlier this year

Earlier this week, Samsung sent out its remarkable new folding smartphone to a number of media outlets, including the BBC.

 

Perhaps now it wishes it hadn’t.

 

Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman: 

 

 

The Verge’s Dieter Bohn:

 

CNBC’s Steve Kovach:

 

Oh dear, oh dear, oh dear.

 

We’re still waiting on a statement from Samsung about this. But it’s a significant setback to the company’s hopes of wowing the world with what, on first glance, was a very impressive feat of engineering.

 

It appears one explanation for the problems is that some reviewers removed a film that went over the screen, thinking it was the typical protective layer you find on all new smartphones to keep the screen in good condition until you buy it.

 

Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman removed his, as did the highly-regarded YouTube reviewer, Marques Brownlee:

 

 

Steve Kovach, however, didn’t remove the film - and said he still had major issues.

 

The device the BBC handled, incidentally, was taken away by Samsung shortly after filming was finished, so our team hasn’t had a chance to see these issues for ourselves. Our reviewer Chris Fox said the way the screen folded together - leaving a small gap - made him nervous about accidents that might occur with small objects.

 

But if the device struggles to this degree in the hands of seasoned reviewers, the return-rate could be huge, if and when it goes on sale to the wider public. Remember, this is a $2,000 smartphone. 

 

The reviewers having problems insist there’s been no rough-handling of the devices. 

 

"Whatever happened, it certainly wasn’t because I have treated this phone badly," wrote Mr Bohn at The Verge. 

 

"I’ve done normal phone stuff, like opening and closing the hinge and putting it in my pocket. We did stick a tiny piece of moulding clay on the back of the phone yesterday to prop it up for a video shoot, which is something we do in every phone video shoot.” 

 

Samsung stole headlines from its competitors by getting its apparently consumer-ready device out there quicker than anyone, a technological two-fingers in the direction of Huawei, the Chinese firm breathing down Samsung’s neck in the smartphone game. 

 

But it’s no good being first if you get it wrong - and put out a device that isn’t quite ready.

 

 

Source

[Karlston]

Similar topics merged.

 

(Potentially big news, so better in a News forum)

[The AchieVer]

This iPhone Folds Twice, Makes Samsung’s Galaxy Fold Look Ridiculous - Video 

After resolving the problem of a 5G iPhone, Apple’s next big challenge in the short term could be a foldable smartphone that would compete against the likes of Samsung Galaxy Fold.

 

And while Cupertino has until now shown no interest in such a project, Caviar, the Russian company that creates out-of-this-world iPhone customizations, has a brilliant idea of how to create a foldable iPhone.

The so-called iPhone Z concept proposes a design that has the iPhone fold twice in order to achieve an overall screen size that nearly matches the one of an iPad.

Thanks to its innovative approach, the device would feature a 6.6-inch display in phone mode and a 10.4-inch screen when switching to tablet. It would also support other modes, like selfie, laptop, and TV, all possible thanks to different orientations and configurations of the screen.Expensive phoneThe phone could use three cameras on the back and come with features that are more or less likely on an iPhone, such as an USB-C connector and Touch ID embedded into the glass.

“We really expect something amazing from the new Apple flagship and will not be impressed by any systematic updates! We, as the brand that has been working with Apple technics and their consumers for already 7 years, have our own ideas about it. We decided to dress them in the form of a concept and make it a public fare – probably, we’d be able to inspire Apple? We’ll send our progress to them,” Caviar says.

The Russian company expects such a model to be priced at approximately 2,900 Euros.

And while Apple hasn’t confirmed plans for a foldable phone, Caviar says it’s willing to do it on its own with help from other manufacturers, as long as any other brand is interested in the joint development of such a device.

 

https://youtu.be/vVn5KXTXu0Y

 

 

 

 

Source

[Karlston]

Update: Samsung provided the following statement to The Verge:

A limited number of early Galaxy Fold samples were provided to media for review. We have received a few reports regarding the main display on the samples provided. We will thoroughly inspect these units in person to determine the cause of the matter.

 

Separately, a few reviewers reported having removed the top layer of the display causing damage to the screen. The main display on the Galaxy Fold features a top protective layer, which is part of the display structure designed to protect the screen from unintended scratches. Removing the protective layer or adding adhesives to the main display may cause damage. We will ensure this information is clearly delivered to our customers.

[Matrix]

22 hours ago, The AchieVer said:

This iPhone Folds Twice, Makes Samsung’s Galaxy Fold Look Ridiculous - Video 

 

More info on this here

 

 

[DKT27]

Concerning. But I think Samsung might have rushed with it. Reason is simple, their whole design and work was stolen by another company and that company was going to soon release it.