The rumours about Samsung making a foldable smartphone have started gaining traction recently. There have been reports of foldable batteries, new foldable OLED display, etc. But looks like Samsung is not the only one looking to make a foldable smartphone. According to a report on Nikkei Asian Review, Huawei is gearing up to launch a foldable smartphone ahead of Samsung in 2019.
The flexible OLED panel will be manufactured by BOE Technology Group, one of the leading display panel makers in the world. A person familiar with Huawei’s plan said, “Huawei’s planned volume could be limited to some 20,000 to 30,000 units, or even less, for a small group of first-wave adopters. The effort is mainly to demonstrate its technological capability and to attract the industry’s attention and media coverage.”
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Jeff Pu, Yuanta Consulting analyst said that the foldable phone will hit the market by early 2019. Apparently, Huawei wants to be the first in the industry to launch a foldable smartphone. While it might sound like a simple competitive gesture, it’s not. Huawei has been facing a backlash from the United Staes government for over two decades now. It has significantly slowed Huawei’s entry into the US markets. Launching a foldable smartphone in collaboration with BOE before Samsung would prove that the Chinese telecommunications provider does not have to rely on US technologies to surge forward.
Samsung is expected to launch its foldable smartphone commemorating the 10 year anniversary of its Galaxy models. It will be a limited edition handset with a focus at a niche category of users. It might be priced anywhere from $1500 to $2000, enough to drill a hole in your pocket. The details regarding Huawei’s and Samsung’s foldable phones are scarce, but we expect more information to pop up in the coming days. Do you think Huawei will beat Samsung in this race? Let us know in the comments below.
