Razr Killer?
Samsung's introduction of the Z Flip, which will go on sale Feb. 14, comes on the heels of another foldable arriving on the market, the Motorola Razr.
"The Flip is a more powerful phone than the Razr," observed Moor's Vena.
"If foldable phones are going to gain traction in the market, the flip phone orientation is going to be a big deal because of the convenience factor," he pointed out.
"The Flip is a nicer device with its glass screen and variable hinge that can bend the phone at different angles," said Gold.
Another potential issue for Motorola and its parent Lenovo are problems meeting demand in the early stages of the Razr's release.
"That's the thing about Samsung," Gold remarked. "Once they start making a device, they can turn the crank and produce a lot of stuff."
Battle of Hinges
Samsung has another advantage over Motorola.
"Samsung has a lot of brand, product equity and distribution strength, which is going to be a part of success in the market," noted NPD's Baker.
"The Flip is a pretty well-put-together product Samsung clearly learned a lot from the issues they had with the original Fold," he added. "It's a very polished device."
One of the issues with foldable devices is the strength of their hinges. At the Samsung event, Hurst noted that the Z Flip's hinge had been opened and closed 200,000 times without any signs of damage.
"The hinge on the Flip seems to be sturdier and less prone to outside attack than the Razr because there's no visible gap when it's shut," observed IHS' Schneemann.
The Flip's two-camera system also raises the foldable a notch above its competition.
"Cameras are an area where Samsung has been strong in the past and where Motorola has struggled in the past," Schneemann recalled.
Further, there's a price gap between the phones, with the Razr selling for $1,499 and the Flip for $1,380.
New Buds
In addition to the S20 line and the Z Flip, Samsung announced a refresh of its wireless earpods at its event.
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