So, what’s stopping you from getting a foldable? [Poll]

Ben Schoon | Aug 6 2023 - 9:00 am PT

Foldable smartphones have reached their fifth major generation, as heralded by Samsung’s Galaxy Z Flip 5 and Fold 5, and the major expansion of brands that are stepping up to the plate. With so many options out there, what’s stopping you from getting a foldable?

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The first generation of foldable smartphones was rough, to say the least. Early concepts like the Royale Flexpai were messy, and others like Huawei’s Mate X were elegant, but obscenely expensive. Samsung split the difference with the first-generation Galaxy Fold which was promising, but suffered from major durability issues that led to Samsung heavily delaying the foldable to make design changes.

Since then, things have improved quite a lot. Samsung’s second generation, which consisted of 2020’s Galaxy Z Flip and Galaxy Z Fold 2, introduced new brushes to the hinge to keep out dust among other design improvements, and the Fold also fixed the tiny display the first generation had. 2021’s Flip 3 and Fold 3 then delivered IPX8 water resistance, and that’s also when competing brands really started upping the ante. The Oppo Find N was a compelling alternate take on the book-style foldable, and the Xiaomi Mi Mix Fold offered a big display, stronger cameras, and a slim profile.

Now, in 2023, the foldable game has really taken off. Motorola is back with its very compelling Razr+. Oppo has gone global with the Find N2 Flip. Honor has introduced an insanely thin Galaxy Z Fold competitor. Even Google has entered the game with the Pixel Fold. Really it’s all made Samsung’s fifth generation of foldables feel a bit boring by comparison.

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Every new foldable has moved further into fixing the problems that foldables have faced over the years. The Flip 3 and Fold 3, as mentioned, brought water resistance. The Motorola Razr+ gave a flip phone a big, useful outer display. The Honor V2 is crazy thin. The Pixel Fold has a great camera and a wider outer display. And everything has also gotten much more durable, too.

But, foldables still aren’t problem-free. Every new foldable release brings a slew of broken screens. App optimization is Android’s forever work-in-progress on these bigger screens. For book-style models especially, there’s the price problem that doesn’t seem to be getting better at all.

And, of course, there’s the display crease that, despite everyone’s best efforts, is far from solved.

In 2023, though, what’s the main reason you don’t want to get a foldable?

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