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I’ve been in love with foldable smartphones ever since Samsung launched its original Galaxy Fold, but there’s no denying that this technology is in its infancy. Even as phones like the Galaxy Z Fold 3 and the 3-inch Galaxy Z Flip are entering the mainstream market, it only takes one flaw to remind us that these phones still have some progress to be made when it comes to durability, especially when it comes to durability. especially with the a glass.
Samsung has pioneered several major improvements to the foldable space, especially when it comes to beefing up these designs and making them more viable for everyday use. Perhaps the company’s biggest victory to date is the debut of the Galaxy Z Fold 3 and Galaxy Z Flip 3, both of which were the first foldable smartphones to offer any sort of water resistance. It’s still not quite on par with other flagships due to the lack of dust resistance, but these phones can take a dunk and keep kicking. A recent durability test really shows how far Samsung has come.
Another area of the foldable concept where Samsung has made major improvements is the hinge. Following its public stumble on the original Galaxy Fold, the Galaxy Z Flip introduced a special “brush” inside the hinge that is designed to keep the mechanism free of debris. After four foldables have now applied this technique, with those original issues all but gone, it seems safe to say that the technology has done a pretty good job.
However, there is still one area where Samsung is still struggling to find the perfect formula when it comes to foldables, and that is when it comes to what’s above the OLED panel. In the case of the Galaxy Z Fold 3 and the Flip 3, this is an ultra-thin layer of glass, and in fact, the same layer has also been applied to the Galaxy Z Flip, Z Flip 5G and the Galaxy Z Fold 2. What do all of these devices have in common? A mysterious problem that sees glass shattering for no apparent reason.
Recently, I picked up my Galaxy Z Flip 3 exam device after a few days of non-use, and was shocked to see that the ultra-thin glass had broken. I had not dropped the phone in the past few days (only once in my use, weeks before), I hadn’t exposed it to extreme heat or cold, I hadn’t even really touched it for at least a few days, so the shattered glass really shocked me.
During the day, the problem only got worse after the screen was folded and unfolded several times. The broken glass did not initially affect the functionality of the phone, but later the touchscreen digitizer began to malfunction. A few hours later, I noticed that the OLED panel itself was starting to fail.
Although this kind of problem is ultimately not the norm, I am not the only person to have had this problem. Samsung’s ultra-thin glass has had this problem on several occasions, and social media has documented it well. In fact, a user encountered the problem last week, 3 days after purchasing the phone. Michael Fisher also documented his experience with the same issue earlier this year on a Galaxy Z Fold 2. It certainly seems to be more common on the Fold series, but it also happens on the Flip.
Why is this happening? This remains for the most part unclear at this point, as Samsung has not provided official details. External forces such as temperature, drops, and other factors can certainly play a role. We hope to learn more about Samsung as the company investigates this broken review unit. At the time of publication, Samsung was unable to provide an overview of what may have happened in this particular case.
Whatever the reason, however, this obviously shouldn’t happen. Normal smartphones usually don’t see their underlying screen crash for hours after the glass breaks, and that glass usually doesn’t shatter without a clear cause. Ultra-thin glass is amazing and improves the experience of using a phone, but Samsung clearly has some work to do.
It can be easy to spend a wonderful few weeks with a foldable like the Flip 3, have a good time, and think of it as tech done right. But time is the indicator of new technologies, and foldables in particular. Each movement exerts an inherent strain on the hinge, on the screen and on the glass. While I would say the majority of users might never run into issues like this, the sheer number of cases we’ve seen like this indicate that there is something worth worrying about.
Ultra-thin glass is an impressive feat, but in the end, it’s still a sheet of glass. Glass is glass, and glass breakage.
But the real problem is not this ultra-thin glass can break, but rather that ultra-thin glass appears to be more susceptible to shattering for reasons other than what is considered normal. The protective glass on your average smartphone doesn’t just shatter for no obvious reason. Clearly, Samsung has something to understand.
Incidents like this are a reminder that foldable technology is still far from mature. The phones are solid and almost all other issues have been addressed, but Samsung and others still have a lot of work to do to improve the form factor. This work is certainly in progress. Last month LG announced a new material designed for future all-plastic foldables, but the company says it’s just as tough as glass without worrying about it shattering. Hopefully this idea will work as well as LG claims.
In the meantime, what can customers do if this happens to them? Speaking with Samsung, the company highlighted the one-year warranty that covers defects and other hardware failures. Beyond this warranty, screen repairs can be handled by Samsung or its authorized service centers, such as Asurion (formerly uBreakiFix). The cost of repairing the interior screen would be $ 369. Alternatively, there’s the offer of Samsung Care +, a monthly subscription that protects the device from other forms of damage and lowers the cost of a screen repair to $ 249 (up to three times a year). .
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