Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 5, Flip 5, Tab S9 July Reveal Leaked

Samsung is apparently pushing the market arrival of its next-gen foldable phones in the Galaxy Z Flip and Fold series ahead to July. According to Korean news outlet The Chosun Ilbo, the electronics titan will reportedly hold an event in Seoul on July 26 to introduce the Galaxy Z Fold 5 and the Galaxy Z Flip 5. Samsung introduced the previous two generations of its foldable devices in the month of August. The report coming out of Samsung's home market adds that following a July introduction, the two phones will hit shelves on August 11.

Citing an executive familiar with the business, The Chosun Ilbo's report states Samsung is moving the launch date for its premium foldable phones in order to accommodate its quarterly figures, owing to a slump in the semiconductor business. The company's semiconductor woes apparently hit close to home: After following a two-chip sale strategy for its flagship phones, serving them in variants with in-house Exynos and Qualcomm chips, Samsung has inked an exclusive multi-year deal with Qualcomm.

Insider reports claim that Samsung employees in the Exynos division are not too happy with the move, while customers have been demanding the shift because of the sub-par performance and thermal throttling woes of Exynos processors compared to Qualcomm. It also appears that Samsung wants to impress phone enthusiasts with its next-gen foldable, following Google's own flashy entry in the segment with the Pixel Fold.

Samsung is reinventing the design of Galaxy Z Fold 5 by adopting a gapless design. So far, all Samsung foldable phones have adopted a hinge design that leaves a wedge-shaped gap between the two halves of the phone. This exposes the device to material damage, especially from liquid and dust particles making their way underneath the screen and the delicate hinge. Leaked renders suggest Samsung is finally fixing that flaw with a look that no longer leaves a gap when the two halves of the phone are closed shut.

The company is also giving a major boost to its more affordable clamshell foldable, the Galaxy Z Flip 5. According to leaks, Samsung has fitted a significantly larger secondary display on the back, which occupies nearly the entire upper half of the phone, save for the cameras. This is a huge win from a functional perspective, theoretically allowing apps to offer more useful features instead of being limited to a rudimentary smaller screen.

In addition to new foldables, the company is also readying the Galaxy Tab S9 tablet for a July reveal. Samsung will reportedly equip its new phones and tablets with Qualcomm's latest Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 series SoC, and some new colors are also expected. While the design upgrades look meaningful, it would be interesting to see how Samsung optimizes its One UI skin to serve all the large-screen UX improvements that Google has promised with Android 14.