Samsung has previously announced it will skip introducing a new version of one of its non-folding flagship phones, the Note, this year, while CEO Koh Dong-jin said the company hopes to increase its foldable phone production despite an ongoing global chip shortage.
"The suspension of the Note series was pretty much decided last year. The company wants to bet more on foldable phones that have much higher prices with distinctive designs," one of the people familiar with the matter said.
Instead, Samsung Electronics is betting heavily on foldable smartphones, with plans to sharply increase production and a new, double-folding model under development.
The double-folding phone could be unveiled as early as the end of this year. Samsung has filed multiple patents for a double-hinged design.
The design is set to make the unfolded screen aspect ratio be in line with the mainstream ratio of 16:9 or 18:9, so more video games and other apps could run more smoothly with better resolutions on the device.
An analyst said, Samsung shipped some 3.5 million foldable smartphones last year, and it is "very likely" that it could double that total to 7.5 million units this year.
With this panorama, Samsung is expected to launch the Galaxy Z Fold 3 and the Galaxy Flip 3, alongside the new double-folding smartphone later this year.
However, the unprecedented global shortages of chips and components, however, could disrupt the South Korean company's ambitious plans, multiple sources said.
CEO Koh Dong-jin, in charge of Samsung's mobile division, addressed the issue at the company's annual general meeting on Wednesday.
"We are making our best efforts to increase the production of foldable smartphones. ... For foldable phones, the display matters the most. We resolved considerable parts of problems [in securing display supplies], although we still cannot produce as many foldable phones as other smartphones."
Samsung has acknowledged that the global chip supply crunch may be problematic for the company for the April-June period but said it is making additional efforts to tackle the issue. The company did not cite the chip shortage as a reason for its decision not to introduce this year a new Galaxy Note phone, which usually competes with the new iPhone series in the second half of the year. Chip supply issues have already hit automakers, industrial computers, and consumer electronics.
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