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Galaxy X may fold two-thirds of the way up and yes we know that sounds mad

Samsung is said to be gearing up for foldable OLED production for an inward folding 8-inch phone: presumably, the Galaxy X.
By
June 29, 2018
Samsung Logo from CES FirstLook 2018-1
TL;DR
  • Samsung will reportedly start testing production of a foldable display on a pilot line at its factory in Korea.
  • If all goes well, mass-production of the displays could apparently begin by the end of the year.
  • The display is said to be for use in an infolding smartphone with a display size between seven and eight inches.

Samsung is reportedly gearing up for the production of foldable OLED displays. The company has reportedly built a pilot line at its OLED manufacturing site in Asan, Korea that will begin operations this summer, according to ETNews.

Should everything go as planned, ETNews says the displays will be used in a foldable smartphone that is planned for release early next year. The phone will reportedly be inward folding device with a 7- to 8-inch screen.

Once any potential issues are ironed out on the pilot line, ETNews says that Samsung plans to convert it into a line for mass production by the end of the year. In 2019, Samsung reportedly plans to produce 1 million foldable panels.

A potential folding phone design seen in an OPPO patent.
A folding phone design seen in an OPPO patent.

This report is consistent with earlier rumors that said Samsung planned to start production of foldable displays by November.

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One thing that isn’t yet thought to be decided is where exactly the phone will fold. If the device folds in half like in the patents we have already seen, the user will have no way of easily checking the screen. To solve this, Samsung is reportedly considering a device that folds two-thirds of the way up, according to ETNews (potentially something more like the OPPO design above). This would leave part of the display visible when folded.

While this is still not official news from Samsung, the rumors we have heard over the past year do appear to be pretty consistent. Perhaps 2019 will actually be the year we finally get to see a device with a foldable display.

Next up: Samsung Galaxy S10 Plus could get a huge 6.44-inch display