Samsung aims to ship up to 7 million foldable smartphones 

Samsung is targeting 7 million units in shipment for the two new foldable smartphones it will launch later this year, TheElec has learned.

For the Galaxy Z Fold 3, which will support the S Pen, it is aiming for up to 3 million units in shipment, people familiar with the matter said.

Samsung is hoping the Galaxy Z Flip 3 and Galaxy Z Fold 3 combined ship between 6 to 7 million units within 2021.

The company shipped 2.5 million foldable smartphones in 2020, and the new target is 2.4 to 2.8 times that.

Galaxy Z Fold 3 will support a 7.7-inch screen when unfolded and a 5.4-inch outer screen.

Its predecessor Z Fold 2 had a 7.6-inch screen and a 6.2-inch outer screen. 

Galaxy Z Flip 3 will have a 6.8-inch inner screen and a 1.9-inch accessory screen, as opposed to its predecessor Z Flip’s 6.7-inch inner screen and 1.1-inch accessory screen.

Samsung has increased its shipment target as it expects more consumers are willing to buy the foldable phones as opposed to just being curious about them.

Despite setting shipment goal for Z Fold 3, which is at 2.5 million to 3 million, lower than Z Flip 3’s 3.5 million to 4 million, Samsung is hoping more that the former reaches is sales target.

Z Fold 3’s support of S Pen is expected widen its usability by the Korean tech giant.

In turn, the company believes that the Z Flip series, despite its popularity with women, has low scalability as it has less differentiating points compared to conventional smartphones. 

However, there are those in Samsung’s supply chain that cast doubt on whether the company’s target of seven million is realistic.

One sources told TheElec that the target may be written on Samsung’s business plan, but shipping over three million will be a more realistic goal.

Last year, Samsung shipped 2.5 million foldable smartphones, which fell way short of its aim of 4.5 million to 5 million units.

Back in 2019, the company aimed to ship a million Galaxy Fold, but ended up moving only half of that. However, at the time, the launch of Fold was delayed due to problems with the screen and hinge.

Samsung is planning to begin manufacturing Galaxy Z Fold 3 and Galaxy Z Flip 3 next month. The Z Fold 3 will have under panel camera and variable refresh rate for the main screen. 

The panels used in both models will be made by Samsung Display at its A3 and A4 lines at Asan.