Being an entirely new category of smartphones, high prices that aren't really warranted for any reason other than the fact that you are paying to be a guinea pig were expected with Samsung's foldable phones, and foldable phones in general.
The first two Galaxy Z Folds were $1999 apiece while the Galaxy Z Flip and the Galaxy Z Flip and Z Flip 5G both touched prices that were similar to those of Samsung's Ultra-branded non-folding Galaxy S or Note phones. However, last year Samsung did the unthinkable. It reduced the price of the latest Galaxy Z Fold model to $1799, and better still, reduced the cost of the Galaxy Z Flip devices to the $1000 mark.
Samsung's sticking to the same prices for the latest phones in both foldable lineups (although the prices can vary depending on where you live), and it suddenly hit me that it's pretty crazy how “affordable” they are already. These things are still expensive for what they offer, yes, but they aren't that expensive at the same time, if you know what I mean.
Samsung's already started normalizing foldable prices
The Galaxy Z Flip 4, in particular, is a knock out of the park thanks to its $999 price tag and meaningful upgrades (though a few more upgrades would have been nice). You're not getting the best experience you can get from a Galaxy phone for that kind of money, but we have to remind ourselves once again that foldables are an entirely new category of mobile devices, so higher-than-normal prices are expected at the moment.
And if rumors are to believed, we may be getting even cheaper foldable Galaxy phones in the near future (basically, foldable phones with mid-range specs), although we will believe that when we see some actual proof. Even if mid-range foldable Galaxy devices aren't coming out anytime soon, I'd say something like the $999 Galaxy Z Flip smartphones are an incredible step on the journey to foldables that don't burn your pockets to give you a taste of the future.
Of course, opting for regular Galaxy phones that don't fold are still better options if you want the best bang for your buck. The Galaxy S22, for instance, gets you considerably better specs for considerably less money than the Galaxy Z Flip 4, while something like the Galaxy S22 Ultra is a great alternative to the Galaxy Z Fold 4. If you want to join the elite club, however, Samsung is making it easier with the prices of its foldable phones, which is great to see.
