Back in 2021, a patent application from Samsung about its rollable phone surfaced on the web. Since then, the development of the rollable phone has appeared in the news several times. The company’s first rollable phone was speculated to launch in 2025. After almost a year, we finally have some new information about the rollable phone.
In the latest news, TheElec reaffirms that the phone could indeed launch in 2025. The report notes that the phone will come with a massive 12.4″ display that can be rolled up. For context, the recently released tri-folding phone from Huawei packs a 10.2″ screen.
This rollable phone is also rumored to come with under-display camera technology. Samsung’s book-style foldables like the Galaxy Z Fold6 already use this technology for one of its selfie cameras. However, it remains unclear how many cameras of the upcoming rollable phone will use the under-display tech especially because the phone will have a different form factor.
Samsung was also working on a tri-folding device
Notably, Samsung was also working on a tri-folding device as far back as 2021 and even showcased a prototype. However, the phone never made it to market. Meanwhile, Huawei became the world’s first to release a tri-folding device with the Huawei Mate XT Ultimate. Huawei’s offering folds in a Z shape rather than inward twice and utilizes a portion of the large foldable display as its cover display.
While it may be surprising to see Huawei take the lead, despite Samsung working on a tri-folding smartphone early on and even showcasing a prototype, the reason reportedly lies in Samsung’s business strategy.
An insider familiar with Samsung’s internal affairs said “I heard that the Mobile Experience division, which is in charge of devices such as smartphones is recently focusing on cost reduction to increase profitability” Another official said, “Samsung Electronics has gone to the extent of cutting costs to the point where it will stop producing mock-up products provided to general mobile phone stores starting this year.”
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