{"id":562769,"date":"2026-07-22T15:54:13","date_gmt":"2026-07-22T15:54:13","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/562769\/"},"modified":"2026-07-22T15:54:13","modified_gmt":"2026-07-22T15:54:13","slug":"samsung-doubles-down-on-folding-phones-and-ai-ahead-of-smart-glasses-launch-the-irish-times","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/562769\/","title":{"rendered":"Samsung doubles down on folding phones and AI ahead of smart glasses launch \u2013 The Irish Times"},"content":{"rendered":"

Samsung <\/a>doubled down on foldable phones, unveiling three new devices as it seeks to defend its territory ahead of an expected entry by Apple into the market. <\/p>\n

The company also hiked prices for its flagship foldable phones, indicating that it was not immune from the pressures that rivals have come under in recent months. <\/p>\n

In a presentation that relied on AI-generated characters and superhero cameos, the company introduced the Z Fold 8 Ultra, the premium offering with Samsung\u2019s new display that creates a thin but strong foldable display that also reduces the visible fold on the screen. The Ultra also has a better battery, a low reflection finish on the display, and an improved camera. It runs on a Snapdragon 8 Elite chip, and comes with an eight-inch inner display. <\/p>\n

The company also introduced the wider Z Fold 8, a passport-style device. Pitching it as the world\u2019s lightest Fold ever, Samsung has included a 4:3 display that can be used in landscape mode for gaming or portrait mode for reading. It comes with a 4800 mAh battery, which gives users about 26 hours of video playback. <\/p>\n

But FDM CCS Insight chief analyst Ben Wood said it was a \u201cbig bet\u201d on whether consumers want a device focused on content consumption. <\/p>\n

The Z Flip 8, meanwhile, improves the cover screen\u2019s functionality, bringing in familiar gestures and running apps full-screen on the outer display. <\/p>\n

The prices for the new Fold and Flip phones are about \u20ac100 more expensive than their predecessors, starting at \u20ac2,049 for the Fold 8 and \u20ac1,339 for the Flip model. <\/p>\n

Samsung has largely dominated the niche foldables category in Ireland, although it has faced competition from Chinese smartphone makers such as Oppo, Honor and Huawei. <\/p>\n

\u201cThe foldables smartphone market is currently a rounding error compared to the wider annual billion-plus \u2018standard\u2019 smartphone opportunity, so it is no surprise that manufacturers are throwing some mud around to see which form factors resonate with consumers,\u201d said Wood. \u201cThe company that cracks the code and identifies the dominant design for foldables has a great opportunity for some upside on these more expensive, higher-margin devices.\u201d<\/p>\n

Apple is widely expected to introduce a folding phone in the coming months, which could provide the category with a credibility boost. <\/p>\n

\u201cApple\u2019s expected move into foldables will challenge Samsung, but it could also be the moment that turns foldables from a niche premium category into a mainstream flagship battleground,\u201d said Wood. <\/p>\n

The company is also continuing to invest in its AI system, with Samsung\u2019s TM Roh saying the company would bring Galaxy AI to more than 800 million devices this year. <\/p>\n

He pitched smartphones as \u201cthe ideal foundation for agentic AI\u201d, saying it was \u201cnot only always with them but also understands them better than any other device\u201d.<\/p>\n

Samsung also teased new smart glasses at the event, showing off its collaboration with Google, Gentle Monster and Warby Parker but offering little detail on the timing of their introduction. <\/p>\n

The glasses mark a new wearable line for Samsung, and will start with a non-display model, Samsung said. <\/p>\n

The launch will put the tech company into competition with Meta, which has signed up with Ray-Ban and Oakley to produce AI-enabled eyewear. Apple is also said to be introducing smart glasses shortly. Privacy concerns may hamper the growth of the sector, however. Opponents have raised the alarm over capabilities that include facial recognition and the potential for surreptitious recording, describing them as an \u201cinvasion of privacy\u201d and \u201cdeeply creepy\u201d. Samsung said the issues are \u201can industry-shared problem\u201d. <\/p>\n

\u201cSamsung\u2019s arrival represents a serious challenge to Meta, but success is far from guaranteed,\u201d said PP Foresight\u2019s Paolo Pescatore. \u201cRay-Ban Meta already enjoys strong awareness and growing adoption, while Samsung has historically struggled to convert its vast smartphone base into users of complementary Galaxy devices. Eyewear represents another valuable upsell opportunity, but Samsung must deliver compelling everyday use cases and prove it can persuade consumers to buy into more than just the smartphone.<\/p>\n

Samsung introduced a second generation of its Watch Ultra, billed as its strongest watch to date with a 35 per cent larger battery that powers the watch for up to 60 hours, alongside the new Watch 9. <\/p>\n

The company also followed Apple into warranty care for its devices, extending the Samsung Care+ service, and financial services in the US with Samsung Card. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Samsung doubled down on foldable phones, unveiling three new devices as it seeks to defend its territory ahead…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":562770,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[61,60,573,80],"class_list":["post-562769","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-technology","tag-ie","tag-ireland","tag-samsung","tag-technology"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/562769","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=562769"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/562769\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/562770"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=562769"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=562769"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=562769"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}