More affordable Samsung Galaxy Z Fold FE could be in the pipeline

Samsung could expand its foldable phone lineup with cheaper models in the not-too-distant future. It could go down the route its already travelled with the Samsung Galaxy S series by introducing an FE (Fan Edition) version of an existing phone, or release a new kind of foldable that's more affordable.

That's according to an interview published by T3 sister-site Tom's Guide. It asked Samsung's US vice president of product marketing, Drew Blackard, about the possibility of cheaper foldable phones: "Absolutely," he said.

"Foldables eventually will come down in price.

"This year, we really focused on resolving the pain points that we saw for our current foldable user base. With Fold, a lot of that had to do with making it slimmer, making it lighter weight, powerful processing. And on Flip, that was driven through the Flex Window and that cover screen experience.

"Of course, over time, as the technology evolves, we'll continue to see innovation and hopefully bring it down in price point at a future time."

There's no time frame on when this could happen, though. Samsung has only recently announced the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 5 and Galaxy Z Flip 5 – devices that will set you back at least £1,749 and £1,049 respectively. And, although the company claims that 28% of customers are looking to get a foldable as their next phone upgrade, that's not necessarily for a few years yet.

Samsung itself told us at T3 that better durability in smartphones means the upgrade cycle is now three years (up from two or even one before). That's kinder on our pockets and the environment.

However, as foldable phones become more widely accepted as among the best phones out there, the demand will increase. At the same time, the technology will mature further and become cheaper to manufacture, and that, hopefully, will result in more affordable devices: "We want to continue to refine it so that it becomes mainstream in terms of all the use cases," added Blackard.

"As those get perfected, then we can kind of start thinking about how we broaden out the portfolio."

Maybe by then Apple will get involved too, and then foldable phones will really be here to stay.