Samsung’s Foldable Smartphone Might Just Have Been Teased to Launch Next Month

Samsung has been constantly teasing the launch of its first-ever foldable smartphone, which is expected to become a reality as soon as November this year - something the company had tipped before. Now, Samsung has posted a teaser of its upcoming Samsung Developer Conference, to be held on November 7-8, where the rumoured foldable smartphone might be announced. This teaser comes within days of Samsung CEO DJ Koh confirming that the upcoming smartphone will actually be a tablet that can be folded into a phone that can fit into a pocket.

In a teaser posted on Twitter from the company's official account, Samsung Mobile has released a teaser for its upcoming Samsung Developer Conference (SDC) which will be held between November 7-8 in Moscone West, San Francisco, California. The teaser subtly hints towards the foldable phone by showing an arrow with the text “Where Now Meets Next”. The arrow is then straightened, which is similar to the functionality that DJ Koh confirmed. The tweet also says, "The crossroads between the present and the future - Samsung Developer Conference is where you'll meet the knowledge needed to stay on tech's cutting edge." Notably, Koh had said this launch timeframe would be plausible at the sidelines of IFA 2018, with SDC as the speculated venue.

In an interview earlier this month, Koh emphasised that the foldable smartphone would not be a “gimmick product” and would arrive with a long term approach. It will be sold internationally, and not be limited to a few markets.

Reports from July claim that the foldable phone has been internally codenamed “Winner” and will sport a 7-inch display with the ability to fold it into a smaller form factor. Additionally, it is claimed that the phone might be initially targeted at niche audiences like games and see a wider rollout in the second half of 2019.

Samsung had first made serious its plans to fast track foldable smartphone technology in its product roadmap in January this year. DJ Koh had then stated at MWC 2018 in Barcelona that it would not be a gimmick and foldable OLED phones would turn out to be a category for Samsung. Certain reports have also stated that the phone, rumoured to be called the Galaxy X, will be extremely pricey, as high as even $1,850 (roughly Rs. 1,36,500).

We don't yet have any leaks or teasers of actual product shots or even specifications of this secret project. At SDC this year, Samsung might just unveil bare minimum details and eventually release the handset next year. However, this is pure speculation and we shall have to wait a couple of weeks to see the real deal.