Clamshell will be the most popular form of foldable smartphones from now up until 2025, a market research firms said Wednesday. The form has been currently commercialized by Samsung Electronics and Motorola.
This year, 3 million units of clamshell-type panels for smartphones will be shipped, according to Display Supply Chain Consultants (DSCC). This will increase to 7 million units in 2021, 13 million units in 2022 and 24 million units in 2023.
This will further increase afterwards but at a slower pace, to 28 million units in 2024 and 31 million units in 2025, the firm said.
Despite being the most shipped of the foldable types, in terms of revenue, besides the year 2023, it will fall behind in-folding foldable panels as time goes by.
Average sales price for clamshell panels is expected to be US$123 in 2020 but this will fall to US$66 in 2025.
In-folding smartphone panels, used by Samsung for the Galaxy Fold last year, will grow more slowly compared to clamshell in the same time period. In 2020, 2 million units will be moved. This will grow to 5 million units in 2021, 9 million units in 2022 and 14 million units in 2023. In 2024, it will grow exponentially to 23 million units, then, 29 million units in 2025.
Average sales price for the panels are expected to be US$193 in 2020 and fall to US$110 by 2025.
Meanwhile, out-folding panels will see the slowest growth among folding displays. In 2022, 2 million units will be moved, reaching 7 million in 2025. Huawei is currently planning to use the form factor for its Mate X series.
Still, despite their rapid growth, foldable phones as a whole will account for 4.7% of the total smartphone sales in 2025, however.