Samsung says it welcomes Apple’s entry into the foldable smartphone market, although the company appears to feel threatened by the likely build quality of the iPhone Duo/Ultra.

A Samsung exec said he sees Apple’s launch as “acknowledging and recognizing” the Korean company’s “pioneering” lead …

Samsung currently dominates the folding smartphone market, but a report yesterday suggests that’s likely to change within the next twelve months. A leading market intelligence company predicted that Apple will own 40% of the market by this time next year; Samsung currently has a 38% share.

Hee-Cheul Moon, one of Samsung’s R&D leads, spoke to Wired.

On the eve of Apple’s highly anticipated folding iPhone, Samsung […] says the competition is “absolutely welcome” […]

“Seeing these other brands entering the market, we feel very proud of ourselves that the value that we pioneered with this new category of foldables is being acknowledged and recognized,” Moon says.

Samsung has suffered major problems with the build quality of its foldables, while Apple is believed to have waited so long precisely because it wanted to ensure it could overcome the quality issues that have plagued competing devices. Specifically, Apple wanted to ensure the crease was almost invisible when unfolded, and that the device would be robust enough to withstand constant folding and unfolding without issue.

Apple reportedly put a huge amount of engineering work into the quality of the hinge, and its robustness seems likely to carry a weight penalty – and it’s this which Samsung is seizing upon as an implied criticism.

Moon said, “The key to providing the highest customer value in this market is all about the weight of the device. As you know, it’s not easy.”

Wired reports that Apple’s foldable is expected to weigh around 235g, while Samsung’s Galaxy Fold 8 weighs 201g.

You can virtually see the beads of sweat on Samsung’s brow.

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