On Feb. 20 Samsung unveiled its new Galaxy Fold phone with foldable screen technology. The company is calling this technology the Infinity Flex Display.
The phone has a tablet-sized screen that can be folded up to fit in a consumer’s pocket.
“How’d they do that? That’s actually pretty sick,” said undeclared sophomore Arthur Hoang.
Samsung demonstrated this new technology in a disguised fashion. Lights were dimmed in order to protect element designs during the company’s developer conference on Feb. 20 according to Justin Denison, senior vice president of mobile product marketing.
Denison said, “There’s a device inside here. And it is stunning.”
The Galaxy Fold is a candy bar-sized phone with immense capabilities. The company has been working on its foldable 7.3-inch Infinity Flex Display OXGA+ resolution for months.
The phone also has six camera lenses, is 5G enabled, an external 4.6 inch HD + AMOLED display and wireless PowerShare with its 4,380 mAh [milliamp hour] battery.
OXGA+ and AMOLED are both new screen technologies that will be light sensitive, making the displays more vibrant with the 16,777,216 of colors it provides, according to Samsung.
Not to mention the Galaxy Fold’s whopping 512GB storage and 12G of RAM make for an endless amount of app, photo and music storage possibilities.
Three days ago, Samsung released a four-minute video of all of its capabilities and features. It shows a user accessing common apps such as Instagram, Google, maps and video calling.
You may use up to three apps simultaneously, using something Samsung calls Multi Window.
The video depicts App Continuity, which enables users to seamlessly go from using an app on the external screen to the large internal display.
This makes phone use a whole new experience aside from being able to fold its display down the middle.
“Google is also officially supporting these new foldable devices with Android and it’s working closely with Samsung,” according to technology website The Verge.
“Google is providing guidance for developers to start using existing features that are built into Android to support these foldable displays.” according to The Verge.
Samsung says it will be able to start mass production of the Infinity Flex Display in a “matter of months,” according to The Verge.
However, Samsung is not the only company dabbling in this new technology.
Microsoft is working on a multiscreen device as well named Andromeda.
Panos Panay, chief product officer for Microsoft, revealed that a pocketable Surface device is “absolutely my baby,” according to technology website Digital Trends in 2018.
Huawei has also produced a foldable screen phone rivaling the Galaxy Fold.
Priced at $1,980, you cannot find Samsung’s Galaxy Fold in stores yet.
According to The Verge, Samsung said it wants to give its viewers a personal “viewing experience.”
“At the beginning of April we’ll have a full press event,” said Kate Beaumont, director of product, services and commercial strategy at Samsung UK to CNN.
The press event will provide a closer look at the handset and will be held a couple weeks before the phone’s release.
The Galaxy Fold will also be available in multiple colors for users to enjoy and personalize.
“It looks pretty cool except $2,000 is a little too much for a phone,” said political science sophomore Ulises Ramos-Ramirez.
“I would rather just buy a laptop for school, maybe buy another car with [that] amount of money.”
Presales have already begun for the phone’s release and the product is expected to hit stores April 26.
