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Samsung eyes new foldable design similar to Apple plans

Samsung is considering whether to release a successor to its Galaxy S25 Edge, after COO Won-Joon Choi said sales of the initial model were “relatively lower” than other lineups.

The company has not committed to launching a new super-thin phone or a TriFold device, which costs about US$2,900, but Choi said it is exploring a wider version of its Galaxy Z Fold that could mirror the form factor Apple is reportedly planning for its first foldable model.

The Galaxy S25 Edge, introduced last year as a 5.8mm-thin device, saw relatively lower sales, with Choi citing its weaker battery endurance compared to higher-end phones.

Samsung also highlighted ongoing foldable development, including a single-fold model certain to arrive this summer, and is evaluating options for a cheaper foldable device.

The new Galaxy S26 lineup features a privacy display and enhanced AI, but Choi said the privacy screen, initially planned for the S25 Ultra, was delayed by technical challenges.

🔗 Source: Bloomberg

🧠 Food for thought

Implications, context, and why it matters.

The Galaxy S25 Edge’s sales numbers suggest it underperformed within Samsung’s lineup

  • SamMobile put Galaxy S25 Edge sales at 1.01 million units after its May 2025 launch 1.
  • Over the first six months after launch, SamMobile listed 4.5 million units for the Galaxy S25+ and 10.98 million for the Galaxy S25 Ultra, while the S25 Edge arrived later than those models 1.
  • The Elec wrote that Samsung weighed an Edge model as a possible replacement for the Plus in the Galaxy S26 series, since the Plus has often lagged the standard and Ultra models 2.
  • Samsung has not made a public promise on a follow-up super-thin phone, and it is still weighing a successor to the S25 Edge.
  • Samsung mobile chief operating officer won-joon choi tied softer Edge sales partly to battery endurance that trails higher-end phones.

Samsung’s form factor experiments add pressure in the U.S. Apple rivalry, but motives are mixed

  • CNBC linked Samsung’s thin-phone work, including the Galaxy S25 Edge, to fresh Apple-Samsung competition in the U.S. 3.
  • Samsung is also testing a wider Galaxy Z Fold that could match the form factor Apple reportedly plans for its first foldable model.
  • Canalys data cited by CNBC put Samsung’s U.S. share at 31% in the second quarter, up from 23%, while Apple fell to 49% from 56% 3.
  • CNBC said Apple is expected to ship a slimmer iPhone to compete with the Galaxy Edge, while JPMorgan’s samik chatterjee told CNBC investors are watching for a first foldable iPhone as part of an iPhone 18 lineup in September 2026 3.
  • Analysts quoted by CNBC traced much of the June-quarter shipment shift to tariffs and related disruption, rather than consumer demand for new form factors 3.

Recent Samsung developments

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