Samsung isn’t planning to launch affordable foldable smartphones in 2024

HIGHLIGHTS

• Samsung has confirmed they won’t make midrange foldable smartphones.
• Earlier, a report mentioned that Samsung might unveil affordable foldables for as low as $400.
• Samsung’s Z-series foldable smartphones are currently in the expensive category.

The introduced its latest flagship foldable phones, the Galaxy Z Flip 5 and Galaxy Z Fold 5, this year, starting at Rs 99,999. Since then there have been rumours that the South Korean tech giant might launch cheaper and affordable foldable phones, but the company has now denied all the rumours.

Details on affordable Samsung foldable phones

• According to a new report, Samsung has confirmed they won’t make midrange foldable smartphones.
• They denied rumours suggesting that the Galaxy Z Flip and Galaxy Z Fold, expected to launch next summer, might be priced as low as $400 (Rs 33,292).

“We don’t plan to manufacture foldable smartphones that are priced in the midrange, and the latest rumours are groundless,” a spokesperson from Samsung Electronics told Korea However, launched globally in July, Samsung’s Galaxy Z-series foldable smartphones are currently in the expensive category, positioned just below the flagship S series.

In India, the Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 5 was launched in two storage choices – 8GB+256GB at Rs 99,999 and 8GB+512GB at Rs 109,999. Meanwhile, the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 5 was launched in three storage options – 12GB+256GB, 12GB+512GB, and 12GB+1TB, priced at Rs 154,999, Rs 164,999, and Rs 184,999, respectively.

Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 5, Galaxy Z Fold 5 specs

Here’s a brief overview of the important specifications for both phones.

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Recently, a tipster named @Tech_Reve on X (formerly Twitter), suggested that the new Samsung foldable phones might cost between $400 and $500, describing it as an ambitious target.

Meanwhile, some leakers thought Samsung might release a fan edition of the foldable phones, keeping the outer look and some key features like the camera but with a less powerful processor and other parts.

• Google’s partnership details with Samsung have been revealed.
• It pays a hefty sum just so its services remain default on Samsung phones.
• Google also shares revenue and incentives so that OEMs prioritise its services.
• Googleis the most popular search engine, and it makes sure to remain so. It’s known to pay over $18 billion to Apple so that Google remains the search engine on iPhones. Google also pays a hefty sum to Android OEMs, and one that has just come to light is how much it paid Samsung for all its key services.

·        How much Google paid Samsung

• Google reportedly paid Samsung a sum of $8 billion over four years so that its key services remain the default options on the OEM’s phones. These include Google Search, Assistant, and the Play Store. This was revealed through an antitrust trial between Google and Epic Games, Bloomberg reported.
• During the trial, James Kolotouros, VP for Partnerships at Google, confirmed this while questioned by a lawyer representing Epic Games, the report added. They said that Google’s partnership with OEMs ensured it shared app store revenue with the companies. This way Google’s services came pre-installed on Android phones, which is the case with almost all popular Android OEMs.

·        Google x Samsung

• The report further reveals that the partnership between Google and Samsung involves more than just pre-installing apps. It’s called ‘Project Banyan’, and it involves pre-installing Google apps on Android phones, and also sharing revenue including incentives. This  even proposed removing the Galaxy Store from home screens but this was not agreed upon. Samsung phones come with its own app store called ‘Galaxy Store’ where you can download apps that are otherwise available on the Play Store as well.

n addition to Google apps coming pre-installed on Android phones, OEMs are also paid to make sure these services are prioritised. This  dominance greatly increases and to do so it does shell out a hefty sum. According to the report, Google proposed spending $2.9 billion in 2020, which then increased to $4.5 billion in 2023. 

• This  has announced that Chrome 120 will not support Android Nougat.
• Chrome is the world’s most popular web browser today including on desktop and mobile devices with billions of active users worldwide.
• While Chrome 120 will not ship to Android Nougat, newer operating systems will continue to receive updates.

This  is the most popular and widely used web browser in the world, both on desktops and Android devices, with new releases happening every four weeks. Recently, Chrome also got a Material You revamp in September on its 15th birthday. While new improvements are always welcome, the company also discontinues support for older operating systems to better support its browser. In its recent announcement, announced that it will end support for Android Nougat and Chrome 119 will be the last version to support the operating system. This means that users on Android 7.0 and 7.1 will no longer receive any updates including security updates, leaving a chunk of Android users exposed to new security threats.