Back in 1996, Motorola brought around a revolution in the world of phones and started a storm — to be more precise, it created what is notably known as the first flip phone, the StarTAC series of ‘clamshell-style wearable’ phones.
The rage died down a few years later but was followed up with something equally interesting. In 2008, Nokia started toying around with foldable phones — bringing out the Nokia 6600 Fold, which again was known to be a clamshell-style device.
Exactly a decade later, in 2018, the world got its first commercially available foldable smartphone — the Royole FlexPai, with a 7.8 inch screen that folded outwards. It was soon followed by Samsung’s Galaxy Fold, Huawei’s Mate X, and Motorola’s Razr Plus hitting the market shelves.
New launches
Now, more updates and models are expected in the next few months. Samsung is expected to be launching its next-generation foldable phone – Galaxy Z Fold7 Ultra — at the next Galaxy Unpacked event in July this year. The company, in a statement, noted that the new model will be more user-friendly as it will be “slimmer, thinner, (with a) lighter design,” and will be its “most advanced foldable.”
Samsung said, “Smartphones are constant companions that we tuck into our pockets, use with one hand and take everywhere we go. So it’s only natural that users desire a foldable device that is as easy to carry as it is to use. To that end, Samsung engineers and designers are refining each generation of the Galaxy Z series to be thinner, lighter and more durable than the last.”
Apple is also expected to launch its first foldable phone next year, called the iPhone 18 Fold, according to media reports. The launch might come with the iPhone 18 series in 2026 — which will also be the first to be powered by the new A20 chip, which is expected to improve efficiency, battery life, heat management, etc in the Apple phones.
Sustained growth
These new launches don’t come in isolation. Over the past few years, the global foldable smartphone market size has seen a sustained growth. According to data from consulting firm Grand View Research, this market was valued at $27 billion in 2023 and is estimated to be worth $74.02 billion in 2030. This is a 13.5% compound annual growth rate (CAGR) from 2024 to 2030. Another report by research firm Mordor Intelligence says that the market size of foldable smartphones in 2024 was estimated to be close to $30 billion, a significant increase from the year prior to it.
Not just that, according to a new report from Counterpoint — a technology market research and industry analysis firm — in the European region, the foldable market share witnessed a 4% year-on-year growth in the first quarter of 2025.
Individual companies offering foldable phones saw significant success too. Google’s market share in Europe in the foldable phones space grew 265%, now encompassing 8% of the market share owing to its models like Pixel 9 Pro Fold and Pixel Fold. Chinese phone maker Tecno witnessed a 336% year-on-year growth.
However, some other major brands like Samsung and Oppo saw red in Europe with their market shares declining from 56% to 41%, and from 12% to 4% respectively, said the Counterpoint report.
Alluring, but niche
Though they’ve been around for a while now, foldable phones are still not as mainstream as regular smartphones. They are quite niche because of a number of factors such as high prices and limited availability. Not all foldable phones are available everywhere around the world too.
Additionally, while the large screens offer better interfaces for multitasking, that’s not something uniquely offered by them. People have been multitasking even since before smartphones were around, and now most already do have multiple devices they can rely on if they need to work on different things at once. There have also been concerns raised about the durability of foldable phones because, by design, they seem more prone to damage than regular smartphones.
However, since comparatively fewer people own foldables (as opposed to regular smartphones), that allure about them is still present — making them an aspiration for many. With more advances in technology and newer models coming up, this bridge might be crossed too!