Source: picture alliance / Getty
Samsung shocked naysayers who believed it was impossible to make a smartphone with a foldable screen because it defied logic when it unveiled the Galaxy Fold. Reviewers who have gotten their hands on test devices are now reporting the phones in their possession are breaking.
This is not the news Samsung wanted to hear after releasing its very impressive Galaxy S10 family of phones. For the most part when the Galaxy Fold was revealed, and tech enthusiasts got to experience it reactions were favorable to the technological marvel. With the $2,000 phone’s release on the horizon, reviewers were finally able to get their hands on the device, and Samsung’s worst nightmare is happening the phones are “breaking” with the screens malfunctioning.
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A unit sent to CNBC broke just after 2 days of use, Mark Gurman who works for Bloomberg News says his device is “completely broken and unusable.” Dieter Bohn’s of The Verge stated his test Galaxy Fold developed a “bulge” along the crease of the phone in effect causing two perpendicular lines of broken lines that made its way from where the problem began to edge of the phone’s screen.
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Another reviewer by the name of Mark Gurman tweeted his phone might have malfunctioned because he removed a protective layer of transparent film that was not supposed to come off. In his defense, it does look like one of those screens that are placed on new devices to protect the screen from scratches and breaks while being shipped.
YouTube tech reviewer Marques Brownlee almost made the same mistake and noticed his phone immediately “spazzed and blacked out” on him before he could ultimately take it off. He was given a replacement device by Samsung.
Luckily for Samsung, this issue occurred before the phones global release, but it’s odd they did not express to reviewers not to remove the plastic film. In a statement, the Korean tech giant stated it will inspect those malfunctioning units “thoroughly” and that the protective covering is part of the display and is meant to protect the phone from “unintended scratches.” They also add that placing any adhesives to the main display will even break the phone as well. The company does promise relay that information to customers when the Fold is released.
https://twitter.com/robotodd/status/1118702208600760320
Not good news for the company especially when it comes trying to sell a $2,000 phone. But being that this issue was discovered before the smartphone’s launch, it’s not on the level of the Samsung Galaxy Note 7 exploding fiasco Samsung had to endure.
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