Made famous by the breakout success of Samsung’s Galaxy Z Fold series, folding phones are now in their fourth generation. Shaking off concerns about reliability, these systems are still early in their lifespans, but beginning performance has still been strong.
With the advantages folding systems have over traditional smartphones, the most common question the market faces is how ubiquitous they could become. Looking at how they interface with common uses alongside their advantages paints an interesting picture of what folding phones in the coming years might expect.
Folding Phones for Daily Uses
To look at what folding phones can offer compared to traditional systems, they need to be compared for both casual and professional use. Casual use is encapsulated by any websites or services that include browsing, interactive portions, and video streaming. Online casinos are a perfect illustration of all of these factors, as users would find examining a Paddy Power Casino bonus, for example.
Using this particular site includes first browsing and collecting bonus offers like free spins and deposit matches, and taking these through the account signup process. From here, users can play games like slots and blackjack, while also streaming hosts through live titles. In other words, these concepts are exactly what most mobile users will experience daily, whether they’re reading news, signing up for websites, or watching videos.
On a professional level, mobile access for work uses today is uncommon. Though systems like Microsoft’s 365 range is compatible with mobile systems, traditional phones are rarely used as a form of access. Managing databases, for example, can be frustrating and inefficient on a small screen, so business uses with mobile are typically restricted to calls, texts, and emails.
Advantages of New Systems
For casual uses as demonstrated by online casino play, the benefits of folding phones can make or break the experience, or be barely noticeable at all, depending on the user. With larger screens, some users will find the experiences on folding systems more engaging, which is especially true for video streams. More importantly, larger screens can better facilitate users with visual or dexterity concerns, allowing access where they might usually have none.
Work uses are an area where folding phones shine, and it’s here that their future use could find its strongest foundation. Thanks to near tablet-like size, folding screens mitigate the input issues users would typically experience with standard phones, opening a whole suite of programs and apps with which to work. These could even be paired with folding keyboards like those reviewed on The Street to enhance control even further. With this final step, mobile phones wouldn’t be far off laptops in terms of workability on the go, just with a much small profile.
“Samsung Smartphone Galaxy Fold 5G: folda” (CC BY 2.0) by verchmarco
According to reports by IDC, foldable phone shipments are expected to experience a CAGR of 69.9% in the 2020-2025 period. From a 0.5% market share in 2021, this would take them to 1.8% of the market in 2025. Though such progress hardly illustrates a takeover, in real numbers it still represents a growth of more than 20 million units shipped in five years. Factor in a rapid expansion of worldwide remote work opportunities, better 5G availability, and improving Bluetooth accessory support, and there’s no telling how long folding phones could advance. Whether playing a few casino games for fun or getting serious work done, the folding phone market is one to watch and is worth considering for millions of users who want or need more from their current smartphones.
