BloombergSamsung Electronics Co on Sunday gave the world its first official look at the company’s upcoming, more compact foldable smartphone in a commercial that aired during the Academy Awards ceremony. Scheduled for a glitzy launch event today in San Francisco, the phone represents Samsung’s effort to “define a new era,” in the words of its new mobile chief, Taemoon Roh. Smaller and more compact than Samsung’s original foldable — the book-like Galaxy Fold — this squarer device harkens back to the familiar form of flip phones, albeit at a larger size. Samsung’s commercial shows some camera interface optimizations for using only half the screen, with the semi-folded device acting as its own stand. The phone will come in at least black and purple, according to the advertisement.
