Samsung to launch foldable smartphone in 2017

Samsung is working extensively on 'Project Valley', an operation set up to develop a smartphone with a bendable screen.

A Bloomberg report claimed that people close to the company, who asked not to be named, said the company is aiming to launch two new devices in early 2017. Both smartphones will come with bendable screens, and can be folded just like a cosmetic compact.

The phones are expected to have Organic Light-emitting Diodes (OLED) screens in two variants, 8-inch and a 5-inch display. The source said, "The phone will look like a tablet."

This innovative move by Samsung seems to be aimed at Apple’s iPhone 7, also set to be launched in 2017. Samsung trying to get a head start on Apple is not surprising, considering that the new OLED screens rumoured to be in the iPhone 7 have been supplied by Samsung itself.

Samsung is the world’s biggest supplier of OLED panels for mobile devices. The company has already mastered advanced display technology in different screens, and their phones are famous for their stunning displays.

After Samsung’s Edge series did not quite boost sales as much as the innovation was expected to, perhaps Samsung hopes yet another innovation may bring back lost customers and cover the losses of the last two fiscals.

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• Samsung smartphone
• OLED