If you like the look of folding phones but can’t justify splashing out £2000 on the likes of the Samsung Galaxy Fold or Huawei Mate X, it could pay to be patient.
Huawei CEO Richard Yu has said he believes folding phones will cost a similar amount to present day flagships in around two years.
Read more: Best smartphone
“Well, currently, folding phones are just in the beginning and the market share is small, they cost a lot and it’s very expensive to produce such devices,” he said after the launch of the Huawei P30 Pro last week, GSMArena reports.
“As times fly, the costs will reduce, I think in two years foldable phones will have a similar price to current flagship phones. Still some people will prefer normal smartphones and others will prefer foldable ones.”
Though flagships are getting more and more expensive by the year, there’s a big difference between the £899.99 that the P20 Pro costs, and the €2299 the Mate X is expected to cost when it comes out later this year.
Two years may seem a long time to wait for prices to fall, but between now and 2021, we not only expect more and more manufacturers to launch folding devices, but also expect the overall quality of them to improve.
Yu added that Huawei has plenty more folding phones in the works, including a miniature model.
“I think that on a flagship level in two years, half of our devices could be foldable,” Yu said.
He continued: “In the future we can make a foldable phone sized in half of this one [P30 Pro], we have plans for a smaller foldable phone.”
Last month, it was reported that Samsung has two more folding phones on the way. The South Korean giant is apparently determined to take an early lead in the fledgling folding phone segment, and is reportedly developing a clamshell-like folding phone that folds vertically, and another that folds away from the user.
Read more: Best Android phones
Sound familiar? The former sounds a lot like the heavily rumoured Motorola Razr 2019, while the latter sounds a lot like the Huawei Mate X.
What’s your take on folding phones? Yay or nay? Let us know on Twitter @TrustedReviews.
Editorial independence
Editorial independence means being able to give an unbiased verdict about a product or company, with the avoidance of conflicts of interest. To ensure this is possible, every member of the editorial staff follows a clear code of conduct.
Professional conduct
We also expect our journalists to follow clear ethical standards in their work. Our staff members must strive for honesty and accuracy in everything they do. We follow the IPSO Editors’ code of practice to underpin these standards.
Editorial independence
Editorial independence means being able to give an unbiased verdict about a product or company, with the avoidance of conflicts of interest. To ensure this is possible, every member of the editorial staff follows a clear code of conduct.
Professional conduct
We also expect our journalists to follow clear ethical standards in their work. Our staff members must strive for honesty and accuracy in everything they do. We follow the IPSO Editors’ code of practice to underpin these standards.
