Samsung launched the Galaxy Z Fold6 at its Galaxy Unpacked event in Paris. The tech giant said the foldable device is thinner and lighter than its predecessor.
Samsung will unveil a thinner version of its flagship foldable smartphone at a launch likely set to take place next month, as it battles Chinese rivals to deliver the slimmest devices to the market.
Folding phones, which have a single screen that can fold in half, came in focus when Samsung first launched such a device in 2019. But Chinese players, in particular Honor and Oppo, have since aggressively released foldables that are thinner and lighter than Samsung's offerings.
Why are slim foldables important?
"With foldables, thinness has become more critical than ever because people aren't prepared to accept the compromise for a thicker and heavier phone to get the real estate that a folding phone can deliver," Ben Wood, chief analyst at CCS Insight, told CNBC on Thursday.
Honor, Oppo and other Chinese players have used their slim designs to differentiate themselves from Samsung.
Let's look at a comparison: Samsung's last foldable from 2024, the Galaxy Z Fold6, is 12.1 millimeter ~(0.48 inches) thick when folded and weighs 239 grams (8.43 oz). Oppo's Find N5, which was released earlier this year, is 8.93 millimeters thick when closed and weighs 229 grams. The Honor Magic V3, which was launched last year, is 9.2 millimeters when folded and weighs 226 grams.
"Samsung needs to step up" in foldables, Wood said.
And that's what the South Korean tech giant is planning to do at its upcoming launch, which is likely to take place next month.
"The newest Galaxy Z series is the thinnest, lightest and most advanced foldable yet – meticulously crafted and built to last," Samsung said in a preview blog post about the phone earlier this month.
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