According to The Elec, key components of Samsung’s new foldable smartphones, Galaxy Z Flip 4 and Galaxy Z Fold 4, have begun mass production. The report also claims that the company will target 10 million units for these foldable devices. There are also reports that Samsung Electronics will order enough parts to produce 10 million mobile phones. That’s more than double the 7.1 million foldable phones shipped last year.
Among the two foldable smartphones, the Samsung Galaxy Flip 4 will account for 70% of shipments. This means that the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 4 will account for 30% of the shipment. This is similar to last year’s Z Flip 3 (4.6 million units, 65 percent) and Z Fold 3 (2.5 million units, 35 percent).
Samsung Display expects to complete the expansion of its foldable panel module production facility in the second quarter. Separately, Samsung Display has increased its production lines in Vietnam to ten from the previous seven. After the expansion is complete, Samsung Display can produce up to 2 million folding display panels per month, up from 1.5 million previously.
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There are already many leaks and speculations regarding these devices. Previous reports claims that both smartphones will come with the Snapdragon 8 Gen1+ flagship processor. Forthermore, these devices will officially arrive around August. Samsung is one of the major players in the foldable smartphone market. In fact, the company has the highest number of models in the foldable smartphone market. Thus, we expect the Galaxy Z Flip 4 and Z Fold 4 to come with some upgrades.
Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 4 / Z Flip 4 battery
Reports out of China claims that Samsung is evaluating whether its upcoming foldable smartphone will use batteries from Chinese battery maker, ATL. According to TheElec, if Samsung Electronics’ mobile division agrees, the Samsung Galaxy Z-series foldable phone will use ATL’s batteries for the first time. So far, most of the batteries Samsung has used in the Galaxy Z Flip and Galaxy Z Fold series are from its affiliate, Samsung SDI.
According to reports, Samsung may consider ATL as a supplier of its batteries to save costs. Analysts in South Korea expect Samsung to lower the price of its latest foldable phone later this year. Battery costs make up about 5% of smartphone manufacturing costs. This is not a critical factor when a company decides the price of a product. However, Samsung Electronics can use ATL to lower the unit price of its existing supplier Samsung SDI. In addition, Samsung plans to use LG Energy Solutions’ batteries on its latest foldable phone.
