Samsung finally unveils its folding phone and it looks surprisingly good

It feels like we’ve been talking about foldable phones for years, but the wait is kinda-sorta over now that Samsung has unveiled its folding screen.

Shown today at the 2018 Samsung Developer Conference in San Francisco, the technology being utilized is referred to by Samsung as Infinity Flex Display, and with the technology, the company has produced a screen that can fold in half like a book.

By using various layers, including layers Samsung refers to as “emitting layers” and “low-temperature polysilicon,” the display can be folded “100s of times,” according to Samsung’s SVP of mobile product, Justin Denison.

Watch Samsung's foldable phone in action, from its #SDC18 demo 👀 pic.twitter.com/OTuCtviIL0

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— CNET (@CNET) November 7, 2018

More about the folding device from Samsung

The device shown will fold out to be tablet-sized, and from the video Samsung showcased, will allow users to utilize “Multi-Active Window,” which allows users to keep up to three different apps open at once – it could be multitaskers best, or worst friend – on the larger display. This functionality is assumed to be part of Samsung’s upgraded UX that will come with the phone in the future.

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Cheekily, Glen Murphy, head of Android UX at Google, stated, “We’re really excited to see how developers … can help unfold this future.” Google is helping Samsung with some of the various Android features for the device.

The phone, when closed, will also feature a 4″ cover display, allowing you to access apps, calls, and texts without the need to unfold the phone.

According to CNET and information obtained at a developers session, some display information is now available.

Image: CNET

When can I buy one?

Well, friends, that is still unknown, but don’t expect a release in 2018. That being said, some rumors are saying it could see an early 2019 release and a price tag that makes the iPhone XS Max look cheap by comparison.

Editor’s Note: We’ll continue to update this story and link to appropriate news as it comes to us.

Would you use a folding phone or does this look ridiculous? Let us know in the comments!

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Josiah Motley

Former KnowTechie editor.