With less than a week to go before its big iPhone event, Apple is widely expected to unveil its first foldable phone, a device that has captured nearly all the attention ahead of the keynote. Other rumored updates, including new AirPods with cameras, have attracted far less notice.
Samsung and the rise of foldables
When most people think of foldables, Samsung is the brand that comes to mind across much of the globe. The company launched its first foldable in 2019, the original Galaxy Fold, a move that got the entire tech industry talking. Samsung has since iterated through eight generations of foldable hardware, most recently the Galaxy Z Fold 8.
Those eight generations represent years of work on displays, hinges, durability, thickness and overall feel. Samsung has repeatedly been willing to take hardware risks, a pattern that dates back well before foldables. The original Galaxy Note pushed smartphone sizes into new territory, and in 2003 Samsung released the i700, a touchscreen smartphone running Windows Mobile, showing early hardware experimentation long before the first iPhone.
Apple’s timing and what it brings
Apple typically takes a different route: it waits until a category has matured and then marries hardware and software to deliver a polished experience. That approach means Apple can enter a market later but rely on tight integration across its ecosystem and strong software optimization.
Because Samsung has a multi‑year head start, I fully expect the Galaxy Z Fold 8 to retain an advantage over Apple’s first foldable in several key areas. At the same time, Apple’s software strengths and ecosystem control could let its first foldable come closer to Samsung’s level than the usual gap between an eighth‑generation product and a first‑generation rival.
Apple entering the foldable market is likely to push the category forward and give Samsung added incentive to continue refining what it has been building for more than half a decade. Samsung took the early risks; Apple sets its own pace when it arrives.
Enjoy next week’s event, Apple. Welcome to the fold.
