Arun TV: Samsung Denies Rumours of Affordable Foldable Smartphones: Report

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".

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.

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.