I feel like its a bad idea for people to buy these. I mean… the screen are weak plastics that can get damaged by a fingernail. Seems like an expensive buy for such a terrible durability. A terrible deal in my opinion.
What even is the use-case for these, anyways?
I have a Samsung fold 3 that I’ve been using since launch. Never had any issues with it and don’t use it with a case either. The inner screen is not cracked or missing anything but there is a visible crease, and the inner screen protector came off naturally a long time ago
The wow factor of a screen that bends still hasn’t worn off for me. That’s so cool. No way I could justify the extra cost though. (Since you’ve gotten actual answers I won’t feel too bad about chiming in with that)
I’ve been using a Flip 4 for the past 2 years now. It’s great having a phone that can easily fit in my pants’ pockets. The fragility thing is overblown IMO. I take it with me on hikes and mountainbike tours. The screen is still pristine. Only the factory-installed screen protector started showing some hairline cracks along the crease a few months ago, so I just replaced it. Not getting a slab phone again if I can help it.
Have one now, and had one before.
Don’t bother, unless you’re crazy.
I like it because I basically can build a terminal and ssh back home with my bluetooth keyboard in my bag, but otherwise it’s basically useless, except for watching youtube sometimes.
When the trifold come out they might be worth it, that’s a proper tablet really.
edit: Ok, 1 killer use-case: When your eyes start going, they’re a godsend.
I’ve seen the earlier iterations have problem, but also seen the newer ones are a lot better. Of course being newer means they still have their mettle to be tested in the real world.
I also have a friend who gave his wife and children the Galaxy flip phones. Don’t know which one. But from what I could see, they’re holding up fine. I’d have to ask him about them next time I meet.
And don’t talk to me about giving expensive phones to children. They’re teenaged enough by my reckon, and it’s his responsibility.
My friend actually has 2 (and 1 regular smartphone) and dailies the Galaxy Z Fold 6. She uses it for work and media consumption and loves it so much she’s mentioned wanting the Huawei Mate XT.
I see the appeal for people who wants/needs the screen real-estate but it isn’t required for regular users. Ultra/Pro models of phones being in a similar position of irrelevancy for people not obsessed with having the best camera.
Huawei Mate XT
Got here ctrl-F-ing for this. Looks like nobody with it has commented yet.
It seems to me if you want a fold, you might as well take it to the logical conclusion.
That makes sense but it is prohibitively expensive at nearly $4,000USD which is more than double the price of every other foldable phone. None of the other ones are a trifold though.
Plus Huawei does not come with Google services preinstalled and requires additional steps to do so.
I mean, I’d consider that a bonus. Although whatever Huawei vendor applications probably aren’t better.
RIP DivestOS.
What even is the use-case for these, anyways?
A larger screen than you can get on a non-foldable phone without creating carrying issues.
My cousin got one some time back, said that she liked it at that point.
I think that it’d be preferable to just carry a 5G-capable tablet in a satchel or something.
Some years back, I got an underarm money belt — very thin so it can be worn under clothing. I didn’t wind up using it for my wallet much, but it did work well to carry a small tablet.
EDIT: This is the closest thing I can find on Amazon quickly to said belt. Very similar, though it’s not the same.
I do. I have multiple phone numbers, the one for dmv and banking is on a cheap RedPocket annual plan in the cheapest flip phone I could buy on ebay (a tcl flip phone or something). I got it for like $15 maybe and it’s going fine.
Edit: I misread, skipped the word “smartphone”.
I have a flip phone for a while now. A black line did form on the crease after ~6 months, but was replaced under warranty. No further problems since. I don’t use a case either and am rather clumsy.
The biggest upside to the design is reclaimed pocket space.
Everyone has accepted carrying a giant slab that takes up one pocket at all times. Manufacturers that attempt to make reasonable sized phones quickly abandon the idea because people don’t purchase them. Everyone says they’d love having a small phone, then buy something else when it’s time to spend money. Flip phones are the closest thing to a compromise we’ll get anymore.
Given that phones are cameras that just so happen to make phone calls and the industry continuously innovate backwards (headphone jack, micro sd expandable storage, removable batteries, physical sim trays, and potentially USB-C if Apple has their way), foldable screens are the first genuine innovation/progression.
Everyone says they’d love having a small phone
Not me. I want a bigger phone!
Oh indeed! Since phones had that shrinkathon, I was asking for more power, more battery, more thickness!
Don’t be so proud when you shave off another 0,3mm, add a 0,3mm more and put a bigger battery in it!
Especially when you have giant hands like me. Small phones are just plain, uncomfortable to use. I like me a wide device I can actually grip and not wrap my entire hand around the thing while I’m using it.
I finally upgraded my six year old iPhone to a 16 pro max because they made the screen even bigger (and 120hz!) Love this phone.
Around 10 years ago I worked in an electronics store. You know, when actual small smartphones were still a thing (think S4 Mini and stuff like that).
Every day people came looking for a small phone. Always were very interested in the smaller devices. And yet most never bought one, they eventually decided for a larger one. For each new Samsung series during that time, I’d guess it was about ~50% of people interested in the Mini series, but only ~5% of our actual sales were the Minis.It’s crazy and I learned a lot about people and their purchasing behavior back then. People often think they want something and never buy it and vice versa. It’s interesting, from a psychological view. In my current business it’s the same - people keep asking for stuff, and once you offer it, nobody cares about it.
That’s probably why Samsung kept on making these Minis until the S5 despite them not seeling. Customers kept just giving them feedback that didn’t reflect their behavior.
What moved them to pick the bigger devices?
Asking as someone who is currently trying to pick between the smallest options on the market
It was always the same. They came in saying they’re looking for a small device. I showed them the small devices. They played around with them a bit, then slowly moved on to the bigger devices. No reason given, they just said they liked the smaller ones more and yet still bought the bigger ones.
I buy the smallest phone I can find… But they keep getting bigger, there just aren’t smaller options available.
I love the idea of a flip phone, if only for the promise of increased durability, a more protected screen. But so far I think these foldable phones have been generally less durable than more traditional phones. So yeah, I’ll wait until the tech matures.
My wife loves her Jelly phones, she’s had two now over the years, and they are TINY. So much so I can’t even type on them, her hands are way smaller than mine. I think the screen is like 3x2 inches.
Everyone says they’d love having a small phone, then buy something else when it’s time to spend money.
I own a Palm Phone, a Unihertz Jelly, an iPhone 13 Mini, a Light Phone 2. Although, from that line up only the iPhone 13 Mini is viable. The rest of the phones come with other issues…
I also don’t have heavy phone usage, so battery life isn’t really a problem for me.
Not sure how this reclaims pocket space. You’re just trading width/height for thickness.
Everyone I’ve talked to who owned one has complained that the screen either gets a line in it where the fold is or delaminates.
I think it’s a fad that will probably die off soon
Hopefully the materials will improve before then. I think foldable screens are a great idea.
the screen either gets a line in it where the fold is or delaminates.
Delamination is the factory installed screen protector, which can be replaced, not the screen itself.
I had one for about a year and went back to a normal phone. The crease didn’t bother me at all, had no problem with delamination… Really no problems with the phone at all. It was great for watching YT and multitasking, but in the end, it was just a really thick/bulky phone and it was annoying to deal with.
I think I’d really prefer a 5.5" screen, if I need something bigger, I’ll use a different device.
I have one of these, and I really love it honestly. I mostly love that it folds so it actually fits in my pocket. I have tiny hands, and tiny emo girl skinny jean pockets, so the super long flat phone is terrible for me and it fits nicely. The folding screen itself is cool too, since I can prop it up or scroll with it at an angle if I want to. I can set it like a little old school makeup compact and have the top part of the screen be YouTube or something. My model has a screen on the cover as well, and that I can use Spotify directly on and skip songs in a Playlist, pause music etc. Which is nice when I’m on my walk outside, as I don’t even need to unlock my phone or open it to navigate.
I put a screen protector on it, the screen protector does wear out eventually but I’m going on two years of use with no issues on the underlying screen, just replaced the peel and stick screen protector once.
That said, I am rethinking my device use and consumption in general. I’ll get another screen protector when I need it, would love to get several more years of use out of it if I can.
I’ve got one. Moto Razr.
It fits in my pocket much better than a slab phone.
I don’t use the outer screen much. Generally when I need to fumble around and change media or unlock my car or something with stuff in my other hand. But Moto’s implementation of the second screen is pretty good.
I like a very large screen and I like portability. If this phone breaks, I’ll probably get either another one like it or a larger one like a Pixel Fold or something.
The solution to the fragile inner screen is - and I know this is a complex idea so bear with me - you close the phone when you’re not actively using it. Seriously, it’s a complete non-issue.
My biggest complaint is the Moto software. I’ve had other Moto phones before and had similar issues - they’re WAY too aggressive with battery optimizations killing background apps. Like holy shit. I have to go in every few days and reset settings that the phone changed on its own so that my VPN stays connected for more than 10 minutes at a time because it wants to kill the app to save battery. But that has nothing to do with the screen.
Z Flip user here! I’ve been loving this phone. I’ve had a Z Flip since I think maybe 2022 now? Anyway, still enjoying the thing. Main reason I got it was the same reason you did… pocketability.
Modern smartphones are just so ridiculously huge that they don’t fit in the ridiculously small women’s pants pockets. I love that I can actually bring a modern smartphone everywhere without needing a purse or bag. Bonus is that it’s also just fun to open and close it… especially when hanging up calls lol.
I have a Galaxy Z Flip 3 (fuckin’ naming schemes) and have been listing after the Razr. I think it looks spectacular, and at least on my generation of devices, the external screen can only run special apps compiled with a Samsung API. The external screen is useless, but from what I read the Razr runs just any app. The bloatware can’t be anywhere near as bad as what Samsung does.
Why don’t you use the external screen more? It’s almost half-size a normal screen, right?
I think the main reason I don’t use the outer screen more is just that if I’m on my phone I’m generally stationary and can open it up without sacrificing convenience. It’s like, 75% open, 25% use the outer screen in general. I also have a Pixel watch for like, at-a-glance notifications.
Completely agree that there is ZERO point to the outer screen if you can’t use any app you choose. Here is my outer home screen:
(Yes, I own a Tesla. No, I’m not a Nazi. I bought it in April 2024 used and owe more than I’d get on a trade. Yes I know there are incentives right now. No they won’t make a difference. No, you don’t know my finances. No, I’m not going to discuss it any more.)
And yes, Pokemon Go works on the outer screen… Kind of. It’s hard to hit the buttons. Throwing balls though, just fine. The more I think about it, being on foot or on a bike is the perfect situation for pretty much all of what the outer screen can do.
The main screen, though - fantastic. I love the Moto UI for Android. I like a small text size and lots of icons.
Mine is the 2024 base version. The plus or ultra or what the fuck ever just has a slightly bigger outer screen and… Idfk what else but I haven’t felt the need for more. Quite happy.
I replaced 2 Pixels in a row which both died in less than a year with this. Better battery life, thermals, and UI than the Pixel. Camera is acceptable, but Pixel is the king there. I have a Pixel 6a which is a burner/camera when I want real photography. Quite happy.
I feel like its a bad idea for people to buy these. I mean… the screen are weak plastics that can get damaged by a fingernail.
I’ve never had a screen scratch on my flipable from a fingernail. Also, how many people do you see walking around with a blown out cracked glass screen on non-foldables? People are hard on all phones.
Seems like an expensive buy for such a terrible durability. A terrible deal in my opinion.
They’re just not that expensive secondhand which is how I buy them. You can see you can get last year’s flagship model for $200 to $400. If you get the 2023 model its even cheaper at $100-$200.
At this cost who cares if it breaks in two to three years?
What even is the use-case for these, anyways?
They are VERY small compared to normal mobile phones and you can put it in your pocket. I really like that.
I have a Pixel 9 Fold and I absolutely love it. I don’t think I can ever go back to a regular phone.
That said, the fingernail thing isn’t a myth. I have a “scratch” (more like an indent) where I tried to clean something off the screen with my fingernail. It’s not bad and just like the fold, it’s only visible in certain lights, so it doesn’t bother me but you definitely have to be more careful with the inner screen than the outer. Though I suspect it’s the built in screen protector, not the actual screen.
That said, the fingernail thing isn’t a myth.
Oh I don’t think flip/foldables are impervious to a strong enough press from a fingernail, I’m just of the opinion that phones get beat and broken all the time. That a flip/foldable is susceptible to a different kind of damage isn’t a dealbreaker for me.
I’ve owned a Z Fold 5 for a little over a year. I’m a developer and often read dev articles, todos, code on a git repo and so on while traveling by buss/train. I find a regular screen size isn’t wide enough for reading code, but the z fold 5 unfolded is perfect. I don’t want to have to carry a tablet, and I definitely don’t want to pull my laptop out just for reading. I definitely won’t be going back to a non-foldable.
The inner screen definitely isn’t as fragile as you make it out to be. Can’t see any scratches on mine. It’s way more of a fingerprint magnet than my outer screen, but I can’t see that when the screens on, and the rest of the time it’s closed and hidden anyway, so why would I care?
My tech-normie co worker has it and loves it, it’s over a year old and the screen is in great shape to even my annoyingly issue-finding-prone eyes
If she can manage that with a slightly older one I can only assume the tech is improving quite rapidly
