Samsung’s Galaxy Fold foldable phone and Huawei’s Mate X are here, offering two different takes on foldable phones.
Both were made to inspire, and to transform the way we think about phones. These aren’t yet everyday devices, but they could set the course for a move toward foldable phones instead of the large-screen models that are too big for your pocket today.
Hype for foldable phones has mounted for a year, setting up 2019 as the start of a revolution in smartphone design. A screen that bends in half feels wildly futuristic, and can also double your screen real estate while keeping the device half the size as you carry it around. But early flaws with the Galaxy Fold’s screen and fears over the sturdiness of the phones’ hinge have dampened enthusiasm for these radical devices.
The ability to bend a flexible screen in half is a hallmark of these early foldable phones, but the similarities stop there. Their screens bend in opposite directions. Their cameras are in different places, too. And these differences between the Galaxy Fold and Mate X matter because they change the way you use each foldable device.
Foldable phones are expensive, exclusive and hard to find — you can buy the $1,980 Fold in the US, UK and South Korea, and the Mate X in China for roughly $2,400, or 16,999 yuan. (The $1,500 Motorola Razr goes on preorder sale beginning Dec 26.) Let’s dig in. More
