Recently, manufacturers have shown a lot of interest in foldable smartphones, believing that this form factor is the future, but the market does not show much interest in such smartphones due to their high price. So far, two foldable smartphones have been announced. Samsung Galaxy Fold for $1980 and Huawei Mate X for €2299/$2590.
Such a high price remains the biggest problem, which puts an end to mass production. However, there is some hope that things will change in the near future.
One of the main reasons why foldable smartphones are so expensive is the high price of flexible displays. Manufacturers of flexible panels, realizing this, have already begun to work on this problem.
In particular, the Chinese flexible screen manufacturer BOE, which supplies panels for the Huawei Mate X, claims that the price of foldable phones will drop significantly in the coming years. BOE senior vice president Zhang Yu recently told reporters that by 2021, the price of smartphones in this form factor will drop to around 10 yuan ($000).
In addition, Huawei plans to start producing smart TVs soon, and Zhang Yu did not deny the rumors that BOE is among its TV panel suppliers. BOE's 55-inch 4K TV panels are currently reported to cost around $200.
Source: 3dnews.ru