Samsung Electronics has unveiled its first three-fold smartphones, in a display of its engineering capabilities in foldable phones, despite the fact that this broader category has yet to become widespread among traditional consumers. The Galaxy Z TriFold is part of a limited category of foldable phones that have two hinges, allowing them to transform into larger tablet-sized devices. Samsung aims to launch the phone initially in South Korea on December 12 at a price of 3.59 million won (about $2,450), and plans to launch it in the United States, although it has not yet disclosed the price. Trifold will also be available in other markets including China, Taiwan, Singapore and the UAE. Samsung unveiled the phone at an event held in Seoul on Tuesday, months before Apple was expected to announce its first foldable iPhone. The Apple product is scheduled to launch next fall, and will have a book-like design, similar to the design of the Galaxy Z Fold 7 phone that Samsung launched in July. Shares of smartphone vendors such as LG Innotek and AAC Technologies Holdings rose after the announcement, while Samsung itself rose as much as 2.9% on Tuesday. “Samsung” leads the market for foldable phones. Liz Lee, an analyst at Counterpoint Research, said: “Very limited quantities of the first tri-fold model from (Samsung) will be released, but the goal is not in size. With expectations of a fundamental shift in competition mechanisms in 2026, especially with (Apple’s) expected entry into the foldable phone category, (Samsung offers a multi-fold device to improve an experimental model). technological leadership.” Also read: Apple accounts for a quarter of the phone market in China thanks to the iPhone 17. Foldable phones still represent just 2.5% of the phone market as a whole, despite having the highest quarterly shipments during the three months ending in September, according to Counterpoint. Samsung increased its market share to 64% of all foldable phones, and achieved one of the largest increases in shipments ever during this period. Huawei Technologies was the first to enter the triple phone category with the Mate XT in 2024, then the updated Mate XTS version this year, at a price close to the Galaxy Z Tri Fold. Huawei will be a strong competitor in China, the largest market for foldable phones in the world so far, despite its lack of Samsung’s great compatibility with Android applications. The Samsung phone also has a different hinge design, as it folds inward from two sides, while the Mate models take the shape of the letter “Z” when folded. “Trifold” offers a unique experience when folded. The external “Trifold” screen has dimensions similar to a regular smartphone. When unfolded, it offers a tablet-like experience with a 10-inch wide screen, which is larger than the Galaxy Z Fold 7’s screen. In tablet-like mode, a different app can run independently on each of the phone’s screens, the equivalent of three separate phones in their usual rectangular shape with a 6.5-inch display side by side. Also read: “Huawei” after 5 years of US sanctions.. How did it resist? Using Samsung DEX software, tailored for this type of device, you can run a desktop-like experience directly on the large internal display (other Samsung phones need to be connected to an external display to enable DEX mode). In DEX mode, the TriFold can operate up to four different workspaces, each capable of running five applications at the same time. To address concerns about the possibility of breakage, Samsung explained that it has improved the phone’s hinges, aluminum frame and display technology to increase long-term durability. The company also intends to offer a one-time discount of 50% on the cost of screen repair if the need arises later. The thickness of the “Tri Fold” at its thinnest point is 3.9 millimeters (0.15 inches), and the phone contains a battery with a capacity of 5600 mAh, which represents the largest capacity that “Samsung” has ever used in a foldable phone. The battery allows continuous video playback for up to 17 hours with the tri-fold screen fully extended. However, the company did not explain in the specifications it disclosed to Bloomberg the duration of the battery’s operation in the case of normal use. The new Samsung phone is powered by artificial intelligence. In a short hands-on test session, using the Trifold was easy, and if a user starts to fold it incorrectly, for example from the right side before the left, the phone quickly warns them via an on-screen notification and vibrations. Also read: “Samsung” achieves the highest quarterly profits in 3 years with the support of artificial intelligence. The company provided “Trifold” with a set of features of the “Galaxy AI” artificial intelligence programs, which include the generative image editor “Generative Edit”, the photography assistant “Photo Assist”, the writing assistant “Writing Assist” and many others. Buyers will receive a trial subscription to Google AI Pro, a subsidiary of Alphabet, for a period of six months. Initial sales of Samsung’s latest foldable phones have outperformed previous models, but they remain small compared to lower-priced traditional models like the Galaxy S25 Ultra. If the company keeps the same phone launch schedule as it has followed in recent years, it is likely to launch the “Galaxy S26” category early next year.