More than 1.44 million units of Samsung Electronics’ new Galaxy Z8 foldable series were sold in Korea during the seven-day preorder period that ended Tuesday, setting a new preorder record for Samsung’s Galaxy smartphone lineup. According to the company, aggregate preorders for the Galaxy Z Fold8 Ultra, Fold8 and Flip8 reached 1.44 million units during the preorder period from July 28 to Monday, roughly 140 units sold every minute.
The previous Galaxy preorder record was held by the Galaxy Note 10, which logged 1.38 million preorders over an 11-day period in 2019. Among the Galaxy S lineup, the Galaxy S26 recorded 1.35 million preorders during a seven-day preorder window earlier this year.
Galaxy Z8 preorder breakdown
Early demand was driven by the Galaxy Fold8, which for the first time adopted a 4:3 aspect ratio described as delivering a more passport-like profile. The Fold8 accounted for about 70 percent of total preorders during the period, reflecting strong consumer interest in the new form factor.
Major carriers reported similar trends: SK Telecom and KT said more than half of customers who preordered the new foldable lineup chose the Fold8, while LG Uplus said the model made up 67.4 percent of its preorders. SK Telecom also reported that 62 percent of customers who preordered a foldable model were switching from conventional bar-type smartphones, up 10 percentage points from the previous generation.
Samsung Electronics said the proportion of female customers increased significantly with the Z8 series. The number of women aged between 10 and 40 who purchased the Z8 series through Samsung’s official online store more than doubled compared with the previous generation, and the Galaxy Fold8 and Galaxy Fold8 Ultra attracted an increased share of women buyers versus their predecessors.
Demand abroad and delivery delays
Early demand extended to overseas markets. In Japan, where iPhone traditionally dominates the premium segment, all color options of the 256-gigabyte Fold8 except lavender sold out at Samsung’s official online store. In the United States, delivery estimates for some popular colors and higher-capacity models have slipped by several months amid strong early demand.
Implications for Samsung’s Mobile Experience business
The strong preorder performance comes as Samsung’s Mobile Experience (MX) business posted an operating loss in the second quarter. The unit reported a 700 billion won operating loss ($489.5 million) for the April–June period, which the company attributed to higher memory prices despite solid sales of the S26 series and mass-market A series smartphones.
With memory prices expected to remain elevated, company and industry observers say stronger sales of premium foldable models could help improve margins. “Stronger sales of high-end models would help cushion the impact of rising memory prices,” an industry official said.
