There’s a lot that can go wrong with even the best phones, and it’s easy to see every reported issue as an inherent fault with a design. However, there’s a lot more to consider than just how the phone is built.
Take the Galaxy Z Fold 7, which is an impressive piece of hardware and a noticeable improvement over the prior Galaxy Z Fold 6. However, while the Z Fold 7 features a larger display and is significantly thinner, it appears that there may be a potential issue with the hinge.
In a recent Reddit thread (via Android Central), several users reported that certain demo models of the phone in stores would not fully open.
The Reddit post includes an image (above), of what appears to be a Z Fold 7 that hasn’t opened fully. Instead, the phone appears slightly bent rather than being flat.
Now, it is worth noting that, while several users have reported seeing the same issue, some posts indicate that the fault is not apparent in other demo units. So, that suggests this isn’t an inherent flaw with demo units.
Having spent some time with the Z Fold 7, I will say the phone's unfolding action is smooth and doesn’t require any real force to open. So then, with all these reports, what's the likely cause of this problem?
Demo units aren’t the best representation of durability
Here’s the thing: One of the challenges when making phones thinner is you have to adapt and change a lot of the design to support it. This includes finding ways to maintain a phone's durability while not increasing its mass or thickness, which can be a major challenge.
In the case of the Galaxy Z Fold 7’s Armor FlexHinge, Samsung completely redesigned it with a new multi-rail structure that uses Advanced Armor Aluminium for increased strength. Not only that, the hinge also features a water-droplet-shaped curve that aims to increase the overall durability of the phone.
The thing to note is that demo units tend to go through a lot more stress than personal phones, even over a short time.
For one thing, they are opened and closed constantly, and often not in the most caring way. In my time working as an engineer in a Samsung store, I saw people treat demo units in ways that would shock you. With that in mind, I wouldn’t rush to the conclusion that this is an inherent design flaw.
In my time working as an engineer in a Samsung store, I saw people treat demo units in ways that would shock you.
That isn’t to say we’ve never seen faults in the hinges on other Galaxy Z models, but those are often down to blockages in the mechanism.
For instance, we saw faults arise in the Galaxy Z Fold 4, with the screen not opening fully due to the glue that held the brushes wearing away. Before anyone jumps to any conclusions, the newer Z Fold models no longer have these brushes.
In my opinion, this doesn't look like it's indicative of a major issue with the design. However, I would understand anyone wanting to wait for a bit to see if the issue arises in users personal devices.
With that in mind, we’d love to hear from you, especially if you’ve experienced this fault in any of the demo units you’ve seen, and if this has turned you off from buying Samsung’s next foldable phone.
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