In order to lower the price of foldable smartphones, Samsung Electronics is looking to manufacture foldable glass on its own. Until now, the company has been sourcing supplies from its sister company Samsung Display. If this plan goes as expected, the price of foldables may drop gradually making them affordable than ever before.
The current cheapest foldable smartphone by Samsung, the Galaxy Z Flip costs $1,400, which is not affordable in any way and even the company feels the same. The foldable glass used on this device has a thickness of 30 micrometers and costs $40 to make, compared to $2 for flat glass on normal phones.
The foldable glass, known as UTG (Ultra-Thin Glass), used in the Galaxy Z Flip is manufactured by DOWOO INSYS whose biggest shareholder is Samsung Display, who then incorporates its OLED panel with the glass and supplies the final product to Samsung Electronics. But if the phone maker can manufacture its own foldable glass, Samsung Electronics can compete directly with its sister company. This could lead to competition between other folding glass manufacturers over the years, eventually bringing down the cost.
In fact, Samsung Electronics is already in talks with multiple foldable glass manufacturers. However, it is not certain if the company will succeed in signing a deal but if it does, we can expect foldable smartphones to get cheaper in the coming years.
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