Samsung is said to be working on a thinner version of the Galaxy Z Fold 6 called the Galaxy Z Fold 6 Slim. Reports claimed that the South Korean firm is looking to close the gap with its Chinese rivals in terms of thinness. However, a new report claims that Samsung won't be able to do so this year.
Galaxy Z Fold 6 Slim isn't as thin as Chinese foldable phones
According to a new report from TheElec, the Galaxy Z Fold 6 Slim may be around 11mm thin. Samsung has reportedly ditched the S Pen digitizer, which is found in the Galaxy Z Fold 6, for the Galaxy Z Fold 6 Slim. The digitizer is 0.6mm thick (0.3mm on both halves of the screen), which means the Galaxy Z Fold 6 Slim could be around 11.5mm thin. However, the company is trying to see if it can reduce the thickness further.
In comparison, foldable phones from Chinese rivals are 9-10mm thin, depending on the model. Samsung reportedly wants its future foldable phones to be as thin as regular phones, such as the Galaxy S24 Ultra. To make that happen, the company might need to improve some components, including the hinge and the battery.
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Chinese foldable phones don't have the IP48 rating (dust and water resistance) that the Galaxy Z Flip 6 and the Galaxy Z Fold 6 have. Samsung wouldn't want to lose the durability rating to match Chinese foldable phones in terms of thinness. So, the company needs to find a way to improve the thinness without compromising product durability.
The Galaxy Z Fold 6 Slim has bigger screens than the regular Galaxy Z Fold 6. It reportedly has a 6.5-inch cover screen and an 8-inch foldable screen. The South Korean firm is said to be planning to make 500,000 to 600,000 units of its upcoming slimmer foldable. The device could be launched only in China and South Korea, where sales of foldable phones are higher.
Samsung is not expecting the sales of Galaxy Z Flip 6 and Galaxy Z Fold 6 to improve compared to their predecessors. Moreover, regarding combined sales of Samsung's new foldable phones, the sales of Galaxy Z Flip 6 are projected to decrease from 70% to 60%, while Galaxy Z Fold 6 sales are expected to increase from 30% to 40%.
