Samsung taking market share from Apple in U.S. as foldable phones gain momentum

https://www.cnbc.com/2025/08/16/samsungs-us-market-share-apple-rivalry-foldable-phones.html

35•mgh2•3h ago

Comments

wraptile•2h ago

I just bought a 2nd hand Fold 6 for 800$ and I'm not going back to slab phones ever. Primarily because I've never done as much reading as I've done in the past month with this phone. Removal of friction here has been such a game changer when it comes to productive use of my phone - now when I would doom scroll otherwise I just unfold my phone and do a bit of reading.

The only drawback is the camera but turns out it's much easier to carry a dedicated camera (Canon g7xm3 in my case) than a dedicated reading device / tablet.

robin_reala•2h ago

Given the price and fragility of foldables, I’m happier to stick to a cheap phone with a small screen to minimise the urge to use it (second-hand iPhone 13 Mini), and carry around a Kobo for reading needs.

bartvk•2h ago

Yup, a friend of mine has been into folding phones for some years now, and he warned me that these foldables seem to last about two years before something happens. (He didn't quite specify what would happen, though.)

theshackleford•1h ago

I got a friend on a fold going on four years now, it's fine. Milage varies I suppose.

bartvk•36m ago

Good to know, thanks!

williamdclt•2h ago

> I’m happier to stick to a cheap phone with a small screen to minimise the urge to use it (second-hand iPhone 13 Mini)

Me too, but this option is disappearing. As our minis reach end of life, I don't think we'll have other "small" options than foldables, unless you're willing to go for super niche android phones (eg unihertz)

Hopefully the foldables become more resilient by then

wraptile•2h ago

The fragility is mostly a myth. New foldables are very durable.

goosedragons•1h ago

I have one of the newer lowend Razrs. It wasn't that expensive, less than a base model iPhone and it actually helps me use my phone less because it takes intention to actually open it.

rjh29•2h ago

I also bought a 2nd hand Fold 4 for $700... it lasted a year before the wifi/bluetooth broke, it stopped folding all the way, and eventually stopped booting up.

Seem to always have reliability issues with Samsung phones. Hopefully the 6th iteration is more stable.

rcarr•1h ago

I felt this way at one point and vocally proclaimed as such on here. My Fold 5 developed a bubble under the screen protector after about 18 months. I sent it into Samsung through the website to get it repaired. Whoever "repaired" it, just seemed to slice the screen protector down the middle with an knife so it had a big ugly line down the center. Predictably, it was full of bubbles again within a week. I'm not even bothering opening it anymore for fear that it will break the inner screen. Between this and the fact that I had another two Samsung phones that developed hardware faults making them unusable after 2 years of use, I'm absolutely done with Samsung. Before that, I had an iPhone that was still going strong after 7 years. I'm preordering an iPhone tomorrow and selling the Samsung. Doubt I will be venturing into the Android ecosystem again. Might get an Apple foldable depending on what the initial reports are like on durability after it's been around for a couple of years. The time sink of having to transfer a phone across is high and I really cba with doing it because of avoidable screen repair.

treecrypto•35m ago

>I had another two Samsung phones that developed hardware faults making them unusable after 2 years of use, I'm absolutely done with Samsung

I haven't tried any foldable phones and I have no intention to anytime soon, but with other samsung phones my experience has been completely different. I've only ever used Samsung smartphones, and the only times they broke was when I dropped them or mishandled them myself somehow. My current one is past the 6 year mark, and I have no issues with it. It still keeps 48 hours of battery with my normal use (though that might not be saying much considering my normal use is different from most people's normal use of watching videos for hours)

Agentus•17m ago

yeah I had my samsung phone brick after three years. Not sure I trust samsung hardware either.

Lio•2h ago

If Samsung had a better reputation for privacy they’re the brand I’d switch to for one of their folders.

I’m put off by how Samsung monetise every data source they’re trusted with though. E.g. TV viewing, phone data, Samsung Pay, forced analytics, etc.

As a brand they don't seem to have any restraint when it comes to user privacy.

imp0cat•1h ago

There is a positive side to that though. For example, their alternative to Apple's Find My seems to work quite well.

ourmandave•1h ago

I switched to a Motorola after my Samsung repeatedly nagged me about offers in my area with the ever popular "not now" instead of "f*ck off" button.

I'd like a foldable but not so much to pay $1300 for the Razr.

FirmwareBurner•38m ago

What Samsung did you have? Afaik their flagships don't have any nagging. And which Motorola did you get? Don't they have the same promotional nagging?

ourmandave•4m ago

Most my phones are the low end free-to-get-you-to-sign-up models.

AT&T doesn't have low end Motorolas so I bought an unlocked, guaranteed to work with AT&T, sub $300 one directly off motorola.com and took it to the AT&T store.

So far it's left me alone.

high_na_euv•2h ago

Flip phones are really the only phone product that actually excites me

Mistletoe•1h ago

Why does it excite you?

high_na_euv•1h ago

It reminds me the phones from 2005, they were really cool and smaller in ya pocket

rjh29•2h ago

Samsung is no longer leading the pack for folding. They refuse to innovate; Fold 7 is almost identical to Fold 4. Cameras are sub-par and they removed pen support. Meanwhile Honor Magic V5 has pen support on both screens, top of the range cameras, silicon-carbide batteries, and is 4.1mm thick unfolded!

rs186•2h ago

So the facts we know are that 1) Samsung market share rising from 23% to 31% and 2) they recently released new foldable phones. But do we know that's the actual primary reason for the increase? I couldn't tell that from the article. The article mentions engagement of specific social media posts, but that's as much as it, without any sales number/estimates from anyone.

thebruce87m•1h ago

Apple are in a bind here since the bend/crease will degrade over time. Other manufacturers get a pass on this sort of stuff (just look at Pixel phones not making emergency calls for a prime example), but apple will be hit with fines and class action lawsuits.

Zigurd•24m ago

Apple sometimes manages to wait out bad ideas: they never gave into the bad idea of touchscreen "convertible" laptops, just conceding the touch bar which is now extinct.

rubzah•1h ago

Been using a flip for four years (Samsung) and will buy another when the time comes (not necessarily Samsung).

Ever wanted a smaller phone? That's a flip phone, it just happens to expand when you need it. Ever drop your phone and damage the screen ? The closed flip phone is super sturdy. Ever wanted to put your phone on the table and use it with one hand, laptop style? Flip. Even in general use, having it slightly bent towards you is a nicer experience that a fully flat phone.

Yes, it has a slight crease in the middle, it has never bothered me even a little. And now, there's an actual microcrack across the crease, doesn't really bother me either, but for some people it might. Look forward to improvements in the next generations.

542354234235•51m ago

I had the Flip 2, 3, and 5. I just switched to the Moto Razr Ultra and I feel like it is even better. The external screen works almost like the internal screen, making it extremely easy to use. Samsung locks down their external screen pretty hard and you need a lot of work arounds that still don't give me the same functionality as the Razr.

I also got the Clicks physical keyboard case for it, which turns it into a modern Blackberry type phone. I love it. The physical keyboard means no on-screen keyboard taking up your external screen space. I only actually open my phone a few times a day, which really helps keep doomscrolling at bay. Full discloser, the keyboard isn't perfect and definitely has some quirks and tradeoffs but on the whole I'm glad I got it.

kristianp•1h ago

It would be nice if the extra room when unfolded could be used for a real keyboard. Probably too thin for one, though.

out_of_protocol•57m ago

Samsung Folds 1-6 are kinda bad, much worse than competitors. Samsung Fold 7 is really good, so are Honor phones (V3, V5). Honor folds are sold on Amazon in Europe. Currently own V3 one, 1 year in, so far so good, feels really sturdy.

n1b0m•52m ago

Feels like the iPhone Air is just a test run for Apple's own folding phone. If you attach two iPhone Airs with a hinge and a little extra screen to create one seamless display, and boom, there's your folding iPhone.

simmerup•47m ago

And it's still worse than an Honor Magic

broast•51m ago

I've had a flip 3 and flip 5 which both had screen and hinge problems within a year. I love the form factor but just don't take it to the beach.

My flip 5 inner screen is currently unusable so I'm stuck using the small square cover screen which I'm enjoying quite a bit too. I don't know if my next phone should be a flip phone or a small phone, but nothing gets as small or as good hardware as the front cover of these flip phones, vs other small phones

frereubu•24m ago

I responded in another thread about the iPhone Air that I wanted something from Apple that's smaller than my current iPhone 13 mini. There are at least two of us!

jrs235•40m ago

Personally I think they're ugly. They might have some functional advantage, that I don't know. I believe they're going to be the cyber truck of mobile phones, primarily a status symbol.

jemmyw•38m ago

I mean who cares that much what their metal slab looks like? I jest because I know lots of people do, but it really should be a thing primarily for function. I'd like a foldable if it had as nice cameras as my current phone.

bartvk•31m ago

If you make a lot of selfies then the camera is actually better.

When making selfies on a regular phone, you use the front-facing camera which is often sub-par. But with the Samsung Folds, you use the main camera for selfies (you flip open the phone, and see the viewfinder on the outside screen).

Zigurd•21m ago

I hope the iPhone Air is successful. Folding phones seems so obviously a gimmick. A year from now many of these relatively affordable folding phones will be e-trash, and social media will be full of complaints and retrospective wisdom about how they could never have been reliable. But consumer product offerings are full of gimmicks. Apple is trying not to give into herd mentality.

ThrowawayTestr•10m ago

My parents are both on their third flip phones. Some people really like the form factor

general1465•17m ago

I have got Samsung S25 Edge which is essentially Samsung's version of iPhone 17 Air few months ago.

Only thing (software wise) which has really been showed down my throat is Bixby and Gemini. No I don't want your stupid AI, get deleted. Other than that, I can't complain about anything.

tassadarforaiur•12m ago

I'm curious how quickly that trend will reverse when Google fulfills their promise to lock down sideloading on android.

Samsung makes nice hardware, but their bloatware is infuriating. I spend a lot of time on every new device, using ADB to purge as many samsung apps as I can. I'm getting tired of doing it.

Once I can't sideload anymore on android, my next phone will be an iphone.

thehappypm•10m ago

Very, very, very few consumers even know what sideloading is

dkobia•11m ago

I thought the idea of a folding phone was just a cash grab until I saw someone on the plane across the aisle from me interacting with one. It has been a while since I saw someone get so much enjoyment out of a device. The back and forth between folded and unfolded to read messages and watch movies/read a book was mesmerizing. It made me realize that this form factor could actually enhance the user experience in a meaningful way.

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