The Galaxy Z Trifold is tipped to reach the US in the first quarter of 2026 after going on sale in South Korea and other markets this month. Samsung has been punting foldables since 2019, while Jobs’ Mob is still rumoured to be cooking up a single-fold model for late next year.
Samsung claims the Galaxy Z Trifold is the first multi-folding phone to launch globally. Huawei did a tri-fold earlier, although it mostly stayed corralled inside China.
The phone opens to a ten-inch display roughly the size of a standard tablet. Its left panel folds inward, then folds again, so the device ends up looking like a normal smartphone with a separate six-and-a-half-inch cover screen.
Samsung uses an in-folding system to keep the big display tucked away when closed. Huawei’s Z-style approach exposes part of its large screen and tends to worry folk who are heavy-handed.
The Trifold’s left flank is 3.9 millimetres thick, which Samsung says is about the same as five credit cards, and the whole thing reaches 12.9 millimetres when fully folded. It weighs 309 grams.
When open, users can juggle multiple apps and do sensible things like bash out an email while reading a document. Plug in a keyboard and mouse, and it pretends to be a personal computer, yet once closed, it still fits in a pocket without much fuss.
Samsung co-chief executive Roh Tae-moon, who runs the consumer electronics division, said the Trifold delivers the “perfect balance between portability, premium performance and productivity all in one device”.
The price for US customers remains a mystery, though in Korea it starts at the local equivalent of about $2,445.
Counterpoint Research director Tom Kang said: “The practical user is unlikely to go for this”. Kang’s point is that tri-folds are beefier than single-fold rivals and use two hinges that may or may not stand up to long-term abuse.
Foldables have grown steadily since Samsung’s first effort seven years ago, though they accounted for only about two per cent of US smartphone shipments last year. Counterpoint reckons they could reach six per cent by 2027 once Job’s Mob finally stumbles into the segment.
