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Samsung has lowered the price of its foldable flip phone, the Galaxy Z Flip 5G, by $ 250. It’s now $ 1,199.99, which at first glance looks like a pretty big drop from its original asking price of $ 1,449.99 in July 2020.
However, there are two things to keep in mind regarding the price change. Firstly, this phone is about six months old and has the same design as the non-5G version released last February. Samsung phones are renowned for seeing early and aggressive offers; now this trend is hitting its foldable phones as well. So while a drop in price is nice to see, it’s not exactly uncommon.
Second, $ 1,200 is still very expensive for a phone that has essentially the same specs and features as a Galaxy S20 FE 5G, which can be had for $ 700 (or less if you can find a deal).
The news of the price cut comes after Samsung’s mobile president TM Roh pledged to make foldable phones ‘more accessible to everyone’ in 2021. It also comes after Samsung’s latest earnings announcement in which he announced that it will expand its foldable product portfolio – specifically citing that it plans an “expansion of the foldable category, including the Galaxy Z Fold and the Galaxy Z Flip.”
We were already expecting a new version of the Z Fold (which opens to the size of a small tablet) this year with stylus support, but it’s unclear when Samsung might release it. As for the Z Flip, it’s unclear what this price drop means as of yet next.
But the bigger question about foldable phones isn’t when new phones will arrive; that’s roughly how much they’re going to cost. While it’s true that $ 1,200 is $ 250 less than $ 1,450, there is still a very big price premium for customers who want their phones to fold into smaller packages.
The Z Flip is by far the best flip-style foldable phone on the market, but it’s a small market. The only other viable competitor is the Motorola Razr 5G, which to date has also been reduced to $ 1,200 from its original asking price of $ 1,400.
Foldable phones are still a luxury item, in other words. These flip phones cost almost 50% more than comparable non-foldable devices. It’s good to see the Z Flip 5G become “more accessible,” but unless that price difference diminishes, foldable phones will continue to be curiosities rather than mainstream devices.
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