This summer’s Galaxy Unpacked event is expected to debut the Galaxy Z Fold 6 and Galaxy Z Flip 6 smartphones from Samsung, but the South Korean company may delay the most exciting and interesting Galaxy Z Fold 6 Fan Edition until later in the year.
Reports from The Elec highlight the Galaxy Z Fold 6 Fan Edition, which would be the first of Samsung’s foldables to carry the FE brand. It represents a model with most of that family’s feature set with more consideration made to price. They have proven to be popular, with Fan Editions of Samsung’s smartphones, tablets, smartwatches and wireless buds all available.
The debut of a Fan Edition is a key moment in the foldables innovation race. Until now, its foldable phones have carried a premium price—understandable given the cutting-edge nature of the screen and hinge. Samsung dominates the market with a 68 per cent share of the worldwide market. The market is moving towards cheaper foldables (Nubia’s Flip 5G, releasing this month, starts at $499), and Samsung will not want to cede any ground.
The Fan Edition branding implies the launch of a cheaper Z Fold 6.
Samsung is expected to prepare three Z Fold 6 models for consumers: the vanilla Z Fold 6, which would be a direct replacement for the solitary Z Fold 5; a Z Fold 6 Ultra with improved camera and internal specifications; and the aforementioned Z Fold 6 FE. With today’s report, the Galaxy Unpacked event could launch with the core vanilla handset while focusing on offering an “uncompromising” Ultra version for those who need excellence in every field.
Leaving the Galaxy Z Fold 6 FE until later in the year allows that focus to stay on the premium and high-end of the folding space. And if the Fold 6 FE does come out later in the year, Samsung can use it as a counter to the iPhone 16.
Samsung’s key 2024 launches are in January and July. With Apple’s September launch, the iPhone’s later start will provide it more momentum going into the holiday quarter… unless Samsung has something that can capture the market’s attention.
If Samsung goes all in with the Z Fold 6 FE, potentially supported by a Z Flip 6 FE and Galaxy S24 FE supporting it, a Galaxy Unpacked Fan Edition event in October will do just that.
Now read more about Samsung’s plans for the Galaxy Z Fold 6 battery…
