Samsung’s Galaxy TriFold could launch very soon – but it has two big problems

After countless rumours and triple-foldable prototype showcases, the Samsung Galaxy Z TriFold could be set to launch later this month – but there’s a catch.

Established tipster Ice Universe has taken to Weibo to claim that Samsung’s new double-folding foldable, the Samsung Galaxy Z TriFold (two hinges with three sections), will launch in South Korea on 29 September alongside the XR headset and Galaxy Glasses.

However, there are at least two huge caveats to note with this, as highlighted by a separate report from South Korean website ETNews.

Deal or fold?

According to the report, the launch of Samsung’s tried-fold foldable is indeed upon us, though it’s a little more conservative in predicting a launch next month (October) with a possible rollout in November.

However, the report also claims that the launch of the Samsung Galaxy Z TriFold will be restricted to Samsung’s home country.

Indeed, this will be a strictly limited affair, with planned shipments of just 50,000 units. To place that in context, when Samsung proceeded with a cautious initial run of its first ever Galaxy Fold foldable in 2019, it made 500,000 units.

Reasons to be cautious

So why is Samsung being so cautious with its new triple/double foldable?

One reason is that it doesn’t expect demand for the TriFold to be particularly high, and wishes to use this initial release to cautiously gauge consumer interest.

Samsung’s downbeat predictions could partly come down to the inevitable high cost of entry. The Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 7 currently starts from £1,799, and that’s a phone with much simpler foldable form factor (one hinge rather than two), with six years of development and much higher production numbers behind it.

Talking of the Fold 7, the report claims that Samsung’s latest full-sized foldable is performing better than expected, and that the company doesn’t wish to cannibalise those sales with what would be a competing product.

Ultimately, it seems unlikely that you’ll be able to buy a Samsung Galaxy Z TriFold at launch. If you do, it’s going to be quite the import operation, and a hugely costly one at that.