Galaxy Z Fold7: Next Gen Glass, New Hinge, Improved Crease?
One of the most significant barriers to purchase for many consumers considering foldable phones is the fragility of their Ultra-Thin Glass screens. These flexible displays, while technologically impressive, introduce a heightened sense of anxiety regarding durability. The fear of failures, cracks, and general wear and tear on these delicate surfaces, often compounded by the high cost of replacement, creates a substantial hurdle for potential buyers, limiting wider adoption of this cutting-edge technology.
New Hinge, Brushes and Glass?
As the next generation Galaxy Z Fold device approaches it appears that this is one area that Samsung could place significant focus on. In this tweet from @PandaFlasPro, it is claimed that the Z Fold7 will be the “Toughest Foldable Smartphone” yet due to a new a new hinge design, new hinge protective brushes and a new generation of Ultra-Thin Glass.
One of the biggest points of stress on these folding glass screens is the point at which it has to fold the most. By adjusting the hinge mechanism, it’s possible that Samsung could significantly reduce the strain on the screen. We’ve seen other OEMs adopt a “Water Drop” hinge mechanism that folds the screen at a much wider radius, often at the detriment of water and dust protection. Perhaps Samsung has found a way around these pitfalls with this new Brush System mentioned in the Tweet.
Hopefully they’ve figured out how to keep the brushes from failing and causing older Z Folds to lose their ability to fold flat..
Is This The Z Fold7 Crease?
One other big advantage to these alternative hinge designs is the reduction of the visibility of the crease. For years now the crease on the Z Fold has remained largely unchanged as devices from Chinese OEMs have gotten pretty far ahead - releasing devices with creases that are much harder to see and feel.
In this article on PhoneArena we see a couple of demo units being shown off by Samsung at this years Mobile World Congress and things look pretty encouraging.
While Samsung did not say that the demo unit with the far less visible crease should represent the crease on any future product, let alone the Z Fold7, it does make some sense to hope that this could be what we’re about to get. Keep in mind that in a previous Tweet @PandaFlashPro has stated that the crease will be 98.1% invisible - a number I have no idea how one could come to. Still, they’ve been right about a lot of Samsung stuff lately, so it’s worth noting.
Galaxy Z Fold7
For anyone not keeping up with the leaks, the Galaxy Z Fold7 is shaping up to be a pretty big year-over-year upgrade over the Fold6 with larger screens, a thinner 4.5mm body, an upgraded 200mp primary camera, a larger vapor chamber and it’s said to retain the S Pen despite dropping the digitizer to save space.. Factor in these rumors of new screen tech, a new hinge design and better brushes and things are looking quite strong.