Why are foldable phones so incredibly expensive?

() — Chris Pantons is what you would call a Google Pixel superfan. This Knoxville, Tennessee native loves the software, the camera, the virtual assistant, everything. Even attributes to the phone’s car accident detection tool for saving his life a few years ago when he was in an accident.

“I’ve owned pretty much every Pixel device,” says Pantons, 33, who has posted hundreds of YouTube videos about Pixel phones and other tech products. “I’ve influenced a lot of my family to switch to Pixel: my brother and sister-in-law, my mom and my wife… and I also got a co-worker to switch.”

But this is the first year you won’t be buying the latest Pixel: the Pixel Fold, a foldable smartphone that starts at $1,799. “I would love to have it,” he told . “I don’t have the finances to do it (…) That price for a first-generation device is astronomical.”

Earlier this month, Google became the latest tech company to introduce a foldable smartphone, promising to give customers all the features they expect from a phone, combined with a tablet-sized screen. But Pantons wasn’t the only one who got scared.

“My first car was $1,800 dollars,” wrote one user on Twitter. “Google has lost its mind.” Another user said they have been saving, knowing that the price of a Pixel foldable phone would inevitably be high once announced.

“The fact that you can buy a new Pixel, a Pixel tablet and a Pixel Watch for less than the foldable and have multiple devices for use cases is of greater value,” Pantons said.

The price problem is not unique to Google. When Samsung released the Galaxy Z Fold in 2020, it cost $1,999. Its price has come down a bit, but the latest iteration of the Z Fold is still $1,799, the same as the Pixel Fold. Even the folding models from budget brands are well over $1,000 in foreign markets.

(Credit Justin Sullivan/Getty Images)

By comparison, the flagship iPhone starts at $799, less than half the price of the Pixel Fold. And the classic prepaid flip phones from the 1990s, suddenly back in style, can cost as little as $20.

The higher price point is one of the factors limiting the size of the foldable market. Samsung currently dominates the category, followed by others like Motorola, Lenovo, Oppo and Huawei. According to ABI Research, foldable and flexible displays accounted for around 0.7% of the smartphone market in 2021, and in 2022 they are expected to fall just below 2%.

Lowering the price could help boost traction, but manufacturers may struggle to do so in the short term.

premium parts

The flexible screen on foldable phones is one of the main reasons why they cost so much.

Flexible displays require more engineering and are more expensive to manufacture than traditional displays. And the Google Pixel Fold has two: a 5.8-inch cover screen and a 7.6-inch inner screen.

Other exclusive components of folding also raise the cost. The Pixel Fold, for example, moves on a custom-built 180-degree hinge. According to the company, the mechanism is completely extracted from under the screen to improve its resistance to dust and reduce the overall thickness of the device. This also requires complex engineering and expensive manufacturing.

“The expenses are mainly due to the high cost of the components, especially the folding screens and the hinge technology, which in many cases is their own design,” explains David McQueen, research director at ABI Research. “So until volume grows enough for sellers to get scale, prices aren’t coming down any time soon.”

A niche product

The smartphones folding are still in their infancy. As a result, much of the research and development, and the costs associated with it, are still high for manufacturers.

“Companies often try to recoup their investment with a high price tag,” says Nabila Popal, director of research at market research firm IDC.

Foldable phones also remain a niche product for now, and manufacturers are targeting pricing for people willing to buy them early to help offset costs.

An uncertain future

The future of foldable phones remains uncertain. Most apps are not yet optimized for foldable devices. Google’s main rival, Apple, has yet to adopt this option; and spending money on a first-generation device with a lot of unknowns is a long shot for anyone.

Flip phones are also notoriously fragile. The first versions of the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold, for example, had screen problems. The repairs of the smartphones Folding can also be expensive.

But Google’s decision to adopt this option may help persuade more consumers to take the risk.

Sean Milfort, a doctoral student at Northcentral University, said he preordered the Pixel Fold because he always wanted a foldable smartphone and didn’t want to leave the Pixel brand.

“I’m a huge fan of the Pixel line and I’ve loved the idea of ​​a foldable,” he said. “The fact that it’s coming from Google (…) gives me hope that they really invest in that device in a bigger way with Android.”

But holdouts like Pantons can wait for it to drop in price.

“If there’s a trade offer later or it goes on sale, then maybe [compre uno]”, said.