Samsung debuts its first trifold months ahead of folding iPhone

[NEW YORK] Samsung Electronics unveiled its first so-called trifold smartphone, flaunting its engineering prowess in foldable devices even as the broader category has yet to catch on with mainstream consumers.

The handset, called the Galaxy Z TriFold, is part of a small subset of folding phones that have two hinges, allowing them to transform into larger, tablet-sized devices. Samsung is initially launching it in South Korea on Dec 12 with a price of 3.6 million won (about US$3,177). It plans to sell the phone in the US, but has not shared pricing. The TriFold will also be available in other markets, including China, Taiwan, Singapore and the United Arab Emirates.

Samsung unveiled the device at an event in Seoul on Tuesday, several months before Apple is expected to announce its first folding iPhone. Bloomberg has reported that the Apple product, due next fall, will be a book-style design, similar in concept to Samsung’s Galaxy Z Fold 7, which went on sale in July.

Huawei Technologies was first to enter this sub-category, with its Mate XT in 2024 and an updated Mate XTs this year that costs as much as the Galaxy Z TriFold. It will put up strong competition in China, the biggest market for foldable phones so far, though it lacks Samsung’s broad Android app compatibility. Samsung’s device has a different hinge design, folding inward from two sides whereas the Mate models take on a Z shape when being folded.

When closed, the TriFold’s outer screen offers similar dimensions to a regular smartphone. But when unfurled, it provides a tablet-style experience with a 10-inch display, larger than the panel on the Galaxy Z Fold 7. In the tablet-like mode, each of the device’s screens can independently run a different app. This provides the equivalent of three separate 6.5-inch bar-style handsets side by side.

Using Samsung’s DeX software, which has been tweaked for this particular hardware type, you can also run a desktop-like experience directly on the large inner display. (Other Samsung phones must be plugged into an external monitor to activate DeX mode.) In DeX, the TriFold can operate as many as four distinct workspaces that can each run five apps simultaneously.

To preempt concerns about potential breakage, Samsung said it has refined the phone’s hinges, aluminium frame and display technology to improve long-term durability. The company will also offer a one-time 50 per cent discount on display repair costs should one eventually be needed.

At its thinnest point, the TriFold measures 3.9 millimetres (0.15 inch). Inside, it contains a 5,600 milliamp-hour battery, marking the largest capacity that Samsung has used in a folding phone so far. The battery provides as much as 17 hours of consecutive video playback with the TriFold display fully open. However, in specifications shared with Bloomberg, the company didn’t say how long it expects the battery to last with typical usage.

In a brief hands-on session, the TriFold was intuitive to use. If the user begins to fold it incorrectly – by closing the right side before the left, for instance – the phone quickly warns them with on-screen notifications and physical vibrations.

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The company has outfitted the TriFold with its suite of Galaxy AI software features, including Generative Edit, Photo Assist, Writing Assist and more. Buyers will receive a 6-month trial of Alphabet’s Google AI Pro subscription.

Early sales of Samsung’s most recent foldables surpassed prior models, but remain tiny compared to more affordable conventional models such as the Galaxy S25 Ultra. If the company sticks with the same launch schedule it’s followed in recent years, it will likely introduce the Galaxy S26 lineup early next year. BLOOMBERG