The smartphone industry has come a long way over the past decade. However, recently things seem to have stagnated in terms of design, with the industry having generally matured on this aspect.
To do away with the boring smartphone designs we’ve been seeing for the past couple or so years, Samsung gave us a smartphone with a new display form factor at the MWC 2019.
Dubbed Samsung Galaxy Fold, this device is the first from the company to feature a folding form factor with two screens that fold and open like a book. A lot has been said about this device, especially on matters of durability, but Samsung has also been quick to quash away any doubts about the quality of this product.
The Korean company even went further and started taking pre-orders of the device in the U.S. a few days ago, with official sales set to begin next week. To drum up the hype, as usual, several review units were sent out to a dozen or so renowned tech journalists in the U.S., including YouTuber MKBHD, The Verge’s Dieter Bohn, and Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman, just to name but a few.
From their time with the Galaxy Fold, they can confirm that the device is experiencing massive display failures, some units doing so even without removing the protective film on the screen that Samsung says shouldn’t be removed.
“The screen on my Galaxy Fold review unit is completely broken and unusable just two days in. Hard to know if this is widespread or not,” Gurman tweeted.
In response, Samsung has issued a statement to The Verge that says:
A limited number of early Galaxy Fold samples were provided to the media for review. We have received a few reports regarding the main display on the samples provided. We will thoroughly inspect these units in person to determine the cause of the matter.
Separately, a few reviewers reported having removed the top layer of the display causing damage to the screen. The main display on the Galaxy Fold features a top protective layer, which is part of the display structure designed to protect the screen from unintended scratches. Removing the protective layer or adding adhesives to the main display may cause damage. We will ensure this information is clearly delivered to our customers.
For now, we can’t tell whether the latest developments will have Samsung rethink its scheduled April 25th U.S. launch for the Galaxy Fold. To be safe, it might be wise to cancel the pre-order you placed a while ago, at least until the air is cleared.
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