Last November, Samsung showed off its new foldable display technology called Infinity Flex. At the 2018 Samsung Developer Conference, the company showed a demo of a device with a 7.3-inch flexible display that can be folded in half. During full screen mode, the device functions as a tablet, and when folded in half, it works as a smartphone.
Samsung’s latest teaser about its foldable phone starts with some Korean characters that bend and curve before revealing the words, “The Future Unfolds.” The video also shows the number 10, hinting that the company will also unveil new models of the Galaxy S10 during the Unpacked event on February 20.
Samsung will introduce its new foldable phone on February 20 at 11:00 a.m. Pacific time (February 21, 3:00 a.m. Philippine time) at the Bill Graham Civic Auditorium in San Francisco, California.
To make the foldable smartphone possible, Samsung said that it had to invent new materials and develop the display from scratch. The company invented an advanced composite polymer that is strong and flexible enough to replace the rigid glass that’s usually used as display covers on smartphones. Samsung also developed a malleable adhesive that makes the display thinner than ever and is strong enough to withstand hundreds of thousands of folds.
The company partnered with Google to develop new software that supports two user interfaces – one when the phone is open and another when it is closed. The platform includes features such as app continuity, allowing for applications to remain open when swapping displays, and up to three apps can be run simultaneously.
The new Samsung foldable phones are expected to cost around $1,700 (P88,000) each.
