Samsung Galaxy Fold pre-orders begin today: Hands-on, specs, price, & more

Priced at Rs 1,64,999, the Galaxy Fold is India's first smartphone with a bendable screen. Deliveries for pre-orders will start from October 20

Launched in India on October 1, the Samsung Galaxy Fold is now available for pre-orders on Samsung online store, Samsung shop, and select retail outlets, including the Samsung Opera House in Bengaluru. The pre-orders will continue for a couple of weeks from now and the delivers for pre-orders will start from October 20.

Priced at Rs 1,64,999, the Galaxy Fold is India’s first smartphone with a bendable screen. First unveiled in February, the phone’s first iteration received a negative feedback from early reviewers over durability of its bendable screen and longevity of the hinge mechanism. Following a backlash, the phone’s initial pre-orders were cancelled and the device went back to the labs for testing and improvements. Thankfully, the model coming to India is the second iteration, which seems to have an improved bendable screen and folding mechanism.

Here are some of the things that I noticed about the device during its India launch:

The Galaxy Fold’s build seems better than the Huawei Mate X, which was introduced in India earlier this year but has not yet been  launched in the country. Compared to Huawei’s foldable device, which has a single screen that bends outwards and is exposed all the time, the Galaxy Fold has a dual-display design -- a conventional 4.6-inch super AMOLED display on the front and a 7.3-inch dynamic AMOLED foldable display that bends inwards, neatly hiding from view when the phone is in its natural folded state. The primary 4.6-inch screen and the phone’s back are covered with protective glass that makes it safe to keep the device in pocket (folded) or on table (unfolded) without worrying about damaging its sensitive plastic-made bendable screen.

However, the Galaxy Fold has its own flaws. Like the Huawei X, the Galaxy Fold’s bendable screen does not have any protection. Moreover, it is not made of glass, but a plastic-like polymer material for flexibility. Therefore, one always needs to be careful while using this screen to avoid damages. The phone’s hinge mechanism seems sturdy and has a solid movement feedback, but any external element, however small, could cause a big damage. Therefore, it is not just the screen that needs care but also the hinge.

Other than the phone’s bendable screen and mechanical hinge, everything else seemed in line with expectations. The phone boots Android Pie operating system-based One user interface, which is tuned to bring sync between the phone’s dual screens. The Galaxy Fold supports the app continuity feature, allowing an easy transition between both displays. For example, you can open an app on the phone’s primary display and continue using it on the secondary bendable screen after you unfold the device. The secondary bendable screen also supports three-window multitasking, allowing you to utilise a bigger screen estate to open three different supported apps simultaneously.

Samsung Galaxy Fold key specifications

• Primary display: 4.6-inch HD+ super AMOLED (21:9), 1680 x 720, 399ppi
• Secondary display: Bendable 7.3-inch dynamic AMOLED (4.2:3), 2152 x 1536, 362ppi
• Selfie camera: 10MP, F2.2, Pixel size: 1.22μm, FoV: 80-degree
• Secondary Selfie camera: 10MP, F2.2, Pixel size: 1.22μm, FoV: 80-degree | 8MP RGB depth sensor, F1.9, Pixel size: 1.12μm, FoV: 85-degree
• Rear camera: 12MP wide-angle, Dual Pixel AF, OIS, F1.5/F2.4, Pixel size: 1.4μm, FoV: 77-degree | 16MP Ultra-wide, F2.2 ,Pixel size: 1.0μm, FoV : 123-degree | 12MP telephoto, PDAF, F2.4, OIS, Pixel size: 1.0μm, FoV: 45-degree
• RAM and ROM: 12GB and 512GB
• Battery: 4,380 mAh
• Others: Stereo speakers with Dolby Atmos support, Single SIM, LTE, fast charging, wireless charging and reverse wireless charging support