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Introduction: The Foldable Smartphone Story Is Changing
The foldable smartphone market has reached an important turning point. For years, manufacturers competed to make foldable phones thinner, lighter, more durable, and more affordable, while consumers remained cautious about paying flagship-level prices for a relatively new form factor. Now, however, the market appears to be moving in a different direction: instead of simply making existing foldable designs better, manufacturers are experimenting with entirely new proportions and experiences.
According to research from Omdia, global foldable smartphone shipments are expected to grow by more than 20% annually through 2028, reaching approximately 36 million units that year. That would be more than double the 18.2 million foldable smartphones shipped globally in 2025.
The Market Looks Weak Before the Recovery
The most interesting part of
At first glance, that sounds like bad news for foldables. But the numbers hide a major change in consumer preference. Flip-style foldables suffered a dramatic 47% decline during the first half of 2026, while book-style foldables remained broadly stable. In other words, consumers are not necessarily abandoning foldables; they appear to be becoming more selective about which type of foldable makes sense.
Book-Style Foldables Take the Lead
Book-style foldable smartphones represented 69% of global foldable shipments during the first half of 2026. That gives the larger, tablet-like design a clear advantage over the traditional clamshell format.
This is a significant development because flip phones were once widely viewed as the most accessible route into the foldable category. Their compact size and nostalgic appeal made them attractive to mainstream consumers. Omdia’s latest figures suggest that the market’s momentum is now shifting toward devices that offer a more substantial productivity and entertainment benefit.
Huawei Has Taken the Lead
Samsung is no longer the dominant force in the book-style foldable segment. Omdia estimates that Huawei controlled 57% of the market during the first half of 2026, while Samsung held 18%.
Honor followed with 9%, Oppo with 7%, and Vivo with 6%, while other manufacturers collectively accounted for the remaining 3%. The numbers demonstrate just how competitive the Chinese smartphone industry has become in foldable hardware.
Samsung Is Still a Major Player
Samsung’s 18% share should not be interpreted as a collapse. The company remains one of the two most important players in the book-style foldable market, even as Huawei has established a substantial lead.
Samsung also has a major advantage in global distribution, brand recognition, software integration, and access to premium markets outside China. Those advantages could become increasingly important as foldables move beyond early adopters and into a broader international audience.
The Wide-Format Design Could Be the Next Big Thing
The most important trend identified by Omdia is the emergence of wide-format foldable smartphones. Instead of producing a tall, narrow device that opens into a traditional tablet-like screen, these products use a shorter and wider shape.
The concept is deceptively simple. A wider outer display can make the phone more comfortable to use while closed, while the internal display can provide a larger horizontal workspace when unfolded. This could make the device feel less like a phone that happens to fold and more like a genuinely flexible computing device.
Why the New Shape Matters
Traditional book-style foldables often force users to compromise when the device is closed. Their narrow external displays can be useful, but typing, browsing, watching videos, and using productivity applications may not feel as natural as they do on a conventional smartphone.
The wide-format approach attempts to solve that problem. A wider external screen can provide a more familiar smartphone experience while maintaining the large internal display that makes foldables attractive in the first place.
Samsung’s Galaxy Z Fold 8 Enters the Fight
Samsung’s eighth-generation foldables have become part of this new design movement. Omdia specifically identifies Samsung’s Galaxy Z Fold 8 as one of the wide-format products helping to drive the next phase of foldable growth.
Omdia describes the new generation as part of a broader move toward a “passport-shaped” foldable design. The company believes this approach can improve portability while maintaining a large internal display for productivity, multitasking, and entertainment.
Huawei Started the New Wave
Huawei deserves particular attention because Omdia identifies the company’s Pura X Max, introduced in May 2026, as a pioneer of the new wide-format design.
Samsung followed with its eighth-generation foldables, while other major Android manufacturers are expected to introduce similar concepts. This suggests that wide-format foldables may not remain an experimental niche for a single manufacturer but could become a major design direction across the industry.
The Flip Phone Problem
The 47% decline in flip-style foldable shipments is arguably the most surprising statistic in the report. Clamshell foldables once looked like the easiest way to make folding technology mainstream because they offered a relatively simple value proposition: a normal-sized smartphone that becomes dramatically smaller when folded.
However, consumers may increasingly expect foldables to deliver functionality that conventional smartphones cannot match. A flip phone primarily offers portability, while a book-style foldable offers an additional large display and a fundamentally different multitasking experience.
Portability Alone May Not Be Enough
The decline of flip phones could indicate that consumers are becoming more demanding. A foldable smartphone carries engineering compromises, including higher prices, additional mechanical complexity, and concerns about durability.
If the only major benefit is that the phone becomes smaller, some consumers may decide that a conventional smartphone is the better value. A book-style foldable, by contrast, can justify its premium through a larger working area and tablet-like functionality.
The 2028 Forecast Is Surprisingly Ambitious
Omdia expects the foldable smartphone market to exceed 22 million units in 2026 and then continue growing by more than 20% annually through 2028. Shipments are projected to reach 36 million units by that point.
That forecast is particularly interesting because the wider smartphone market is facing significant pressure. Omdia expects global smartphone shipments to decline in 2026 as memory costs and other component pressures increase. At the same time, average smartphone prices are expected to rise substantially.
Foldables Are Becoming a Premium Strategy
The growth of foldables therefore cannot be separated from the broader transformation of the smartphone industry. Manufacturers increasingly need higher-value products capable of generating stronger revenue and margins.
Omdia has noted that
The Real Battle Is About Value
The next phase of the foldable market will not be won simply by making the hinge thinner or adding another camera. Manufacturers need to convince customers that folding technology solves real problems.
A successful foldable must provide something that a normal flagship cannot easily reproduce. Larger displays, improved multitasking, better portability, desktop-style productivity, AI features, and stronger software optimization could all become part of that value proposition.
Chinese Manufacturers Are Applying Pressure
Huawei’s leadership demonstrates how quickly the competitive landscape can change. Chinese manufacturers have spent years experimenting with different hinge mechanisms, screen proportions, camera systems, battery configurations, and lightweight designs.
Companies such as Honor, Oppo, Vivo, and Huawei have also helped broaden the range of foldable concepts available in the market. Their competition puts additional pressure on Samsung to innovate rather than simply refine the formula it established with earlier Galaxy Z Fold generations.
Samsung Still Has Important Advantages
Despite losing the top position in this particular segment, Samsung is far from irrelevant. Its global reach gives it access to markets where several Chinese foldable brands face distribution limitations.
Samsung also has a mature ecosystem spanning smartphones, tablets, watches, earbuds, computers, cloud services, and software. If foldables become more important to the premium smartphone market, the ability to connect the phone to a broader ecosystem could become a major competitive advantage.
China Could Remain the Foldable Battleground
The numbers also highlight the importance of the Chinese market. Huawei’s enormous share of the book-style category indicates that local manufacturers are playing an outsized role in shaping foldable hardware.
China has become one of the most competitive environments for smartphone innovation, and foldables are no exception. Manufacturers can experiment with unconventional designs there before similar ideas spread into international markets.
Global Availability Will Be Crucial
Innovation alone, however, does not guarantee global success. A foldable design can be technologically impressive and still struggle if consumers cannot easily buy it, access its software ecosystem, or receive long-term support.
This is one area where
Software Could Become the Deciding Factor
Hardware is only half the foldable equation. The internal display needs software capable of taking advantage of its larger surface.
Multitasking, split-screen applications, drag-and-drop functionality, flexible window management, AI-powered productivity, and continuity between the outer and inner displays can transform a foldable from an expensive novelty into a practical computer.
Artificial Intelligence Could Strengthen the Argument
AI may also give foldables another reason to exist. A large internal display provides more room for AI-generated summaries, research, document editing, visual analysis, translation, and multitasking.
Imagine researching a topic on one side of the screen while an AI assistant organizes information on the other. That type of experience makes more sense on a foldable than on a traditional smartphone because the additional screen real estate becomes part of the device’s core functionality.
The Market Still Has Serious Problems
The optimistic forecast should not hide the
Consumers also have legitimate concerns about hinge reliability, display durability, repair costs, battery life, weight, and long-term ownership. These issues must continue improving if foldables are to move beyond premium enthusiasts.
The Price Barrier Remains Significant
Even if manufacturing costs decline, foldable displays and hinge mechanisms require additional components and engineering. That makes it difficult to bring flagship-level foldables down to mass-market prices.
The market therefore needs a combination of manufacturing scale and technological maturity. More manufacturers adopting similar designs could eventually increase component volumes and reduce costs, but that process will take time.
The Next Two Years Could Be Critical
The period from 2026 to 2028 could determine whether foldables become a permanent smartphone category or remain a premium niche.
Omdia’s forecast suggests strong growth, but achieving 36 million annual shipments will require more than incremental improvements. Manufacturers will need compelling designs, reliable hardware, competitive pricing, better software, and broader availability.
What Undercode Say: The Numbers Tell a More Complicated Story
Market Growth Is Not the Whole Story
The headline says foldables are expected to grow rapidly, but the immediate data is more complicated. Shipments actually fell 21.6% during the first half of 2026.
The Category Is Changing From Within
The decline does not affect all foldables equally. Flip devices are suffering far more severely than book-style products, suggesting that consumers are changing what they expect from foldable technology.
Book-Style Devices Have Found a Stronger Purpose
A book-style foldable offers a clear functional advantage: a larger workspace. That gives manufacturers a stronger argument for charging premium prices.
Flip Phones Had a Simpler Proposition
Clamshell devices are attractive because they are compact. But compactness alone may not justify the price premium when conventional smartphones continue to become thinner and more efficient.
Wide-Format Devices Attack the Weakness of Book Folds
Traditional book-style devices can be awkward when closed. Wide-format designs attempt to address that problem without abandoning the large internal display.
Huawei’s Lead Is Strategically Important
Huawei controlling 57% of the book-style market shows that Samsung’s historic leadership cannot be taken for granted.
Samsung Still Has a Strong Foundation
An 18% share keeps Samsung firmly in second place, giving the company significant scale and visibility in the category.
Competition Is Becoming More Diverse
Honor, Oppo, Vivo, Huawei, and Samsung are all contributing to the evolution of foldable hardware. More competition should accelerate experimentation.
More Designs Could Mean Faster Adoption
Consumers have different priorities. Some want portability, others want productivity, and others want the largest possible display. More form factors give the category a better chance of reaching different audiences.
The Foldable Market Is Becoming Segmented
Rather than one foldable category dominating everything, the industry could develop several distinct segments: compact flips, conventional book folds, wide-format folds, and potentially larger multi-fold devices.
Premium Pricing Is Both an Advantage and a Weakness
High prices generate revenue for manufacturers but restrict the size of the potential customer base.
Foldables Could Become More Important Without Becoming Mainstream
A market can grow dramatically while remaining relatively small compared with conventional smartphones. Thirty-six million units would still represent only a fraction of the global smartphone market.
The 36 Million Forecast Should Be Viewed in Context
The projected 36 million units by 2028 would be more than double 2025’s 18.2 million units. That is impressive category growth, but it does not mean foldables will replace conventional smartphones.
The Smartphone Market Is Moving Toward Higher Value
Omdia expects smartphone average selling prices to rise sharply in 2026 even as overall shipment volumes decline. This environment may favor premium foldables because manufacturers are increasingly prioritizing value over raw unit volume.
Foldables Fit That Strategy Naturally
A foldable is an obvious premium product. It combines advanced displays, sophisticated hinges, high-end processors, flagship cameras, and expensive engineering into a single device.
Samsung Needs More Than Brand Recognition
Samsung’s global reputation is valuable, but Chinese competitors are proving that hardware innovation can quickly change the balance of power.
Huawei’s Position Deserves Attention
A 57% share in the book-style category gives Huawei considerable influence over the direction of the market.
The Wide-Format Concept Could Spread Quickly
If consumers respond positively to shorter, wider foldables, other manufacturers are likely to copy the concept. Omdia already expects more Android brands to adopt similar designs in 2027.
Standardization Could Help the Industry
As more companies adopt similar screen proportions and component architectures, suppliers could produce parts at greater scale.
Economies of Scale Could Lower Prices
Higher production volumes could eventually reduce component and manufacturing costs, making foldables more accessible.
But Cheaper Hardware Is Not Enough
Lower prices will help, but consumers also need confidence in durability, software support, repairs, and battery longevity.
Durability Remains a Psychological Barrier
Even when modern foldables are significantly stronger than early generations, consumers remember the problems associated with first-generation folding displays.
Reliability Must Become Boring
The ultimate success of foldables may come when consumers stop thinking about the hinge and display because failures become rare and repairs become predictable.
Software Is the Forgotten Opportunity
Hardware manufacturers often focus heavily on the physical design, but the software experience can determine whether a large foldable screen feels useful or simply oversized.
AI Could Make the Large Display More Valuable
AI assistants can take advantage of additional screen space for simultaneous context, content generation, analysis, and interaction.
Foldables Could Become Mobile Workstations
The long-term opportunity is not simply a bigger phone. It is a device that can move between smartphone, tablet, and lightweight workstation roles.
This Changes the Upgrade Argument
A consumer may hesitate to pay more for a slightly better camera, but a device that replaces both a phone and a tablet has a stronger value proposition.
Accessories Could Become More Important
Keyboards, styluses, desktop interfaces, monitors, earbuds, and other ecosystem products could increase the usefulness of foldables.
Samsung Has an Ecosystem Advantage
Samsung’s broader hardware portfolio gives it an opportunity to position the Galaxy Z Fold line as the center of a connected productivity ecosystem.
Huawei Has a Different Strength
Huawei’s ability to experiment aggressively with hardware gives it an advantage in design innovation, particularly in markets where its ecosystem is already established.
Chinese Competition Could Accelerate Innovation
The pressure created by several manufacturers competing simultaneously is likely to produce faster improvements in weight, thickness, displays, hinges, batteries, and cameras.
The Flip Category Is Not Necessarily Dead
The 47% decline is serious, but it should not be interpreted as proof that clamshell phones have no future. A genuinely compelling price or a major battery and design breakthrough could revive demand.
The Category Could Eventually Stabilize
Some consumers will always prefer compact flip phones, while others will prefer large book-style devices. The market may eventually settle into several profitable niches.
2026 Looks Like a Transition Year
The first-half decline makes 2026 look weak, but Omdia expects full-year shipments to exceed 22 million units, with growth recovering by more than 22%.
The Second Half Matters Enormously
New wide-format products could significantly influence the second half of the year and determine whether the market’s annual recovery is as strong as Omdia expects.
2027 Could Be the Real Test
If more manufacturers launch wide-format foldables in 2027 and consumer demand remains strong, the category could enter a much more sustainable growth phase.
2028 Could Mark the Beginning of the Mainstream Era
Thirty-six million shipments would not make foldables mainstream overnight, but it would establish a much larger installed base and encourage developers to take foldable displays more seriously.
The Biggest Question Is Still Consumer Behavior
Technology companies can create new form factors, but consumers ultimately decide whether those products deserve a place in their pockets.
The Foldable Market Has Finally Found a Stronger Argument
The most convincing future for foldables is not simply “it folds.” It is “one device can give you the portability of a smartphone and the working space of a tablet.”
That Is Why Wide-Format Foldables Matter
If the new proportions make folded devices more comfortable and unfolded devices more useful, they could address two of the biggest criticisms of existing book-style foldables at once.
The Industry Is Moving Beyond the Gimmick
The foldable smartphone is gradually becoming less about demonstrating a clever hinge and more about redefining how a mobile device can be used.
The Next Battle Will Be About Execution
Samsung, Huawei, Honor, Oppo, Vivo, and other manufacturers now have the opportunity to prove which approach delivers the best balance of size, weight, durability, software, performance, battery life, and price.
The Verdict
Omdia’s numbers suggest that foldables are not disappearing. Instead, the category is being reshaped. The weakness of flip phones, the stability of book-style models, Huawei’s leadership, Samsung’s continued relevance, and the emergence of wide-format designs all point toward a market entering a new chapter.
Deep Analysis: Commands for Reading the Foldable Market
Command 1 — Watch the Book-Style Share
Track whether book-style foldables remain above 69% of total foldable shipments. A sustained high share would confirm that consumers increasingly value productivity and screen size over simple portability.
Command 2 — Watch the Flip Recovery
A recovery in flip shipments would suggest that the 47% decline was temporary. Continued weakness, however, would indicate a structural shift away from clamshell designs.
Command 3 — Compare Wide and Traditional Folds
The key question is whether wide-format foldables actually outperform traditional book-style devices in sales. If they do, manufacturers will likely accelerate adoption of the new shape.
Command 4 — Track Huawei Versus Samsung
The Huawei-Samsung rivalry provides one of the clearest indicators of how quickly the foldable leadership landscape is changing.
Command 5 — Monitor 2027 Product Launches
Omdia expects more Android brands to adopt wide-format designs in 2027. The number and quality of those launches will be an important test of the technology’s momentum.
Command 6 — Watch Average Selling Prices
If foldable prices begin falling while shipments rise, the market could be entering a genuine mass-adoption phase.
Command 7 — Measure Durability Improvements
Hinge reliability, display longevity, crease reduction, and repairability should be treated as core indicators of the category’s maturity.
Command 8 — Follow Software Development
Look beyond hardware specifications. The best foldable may ultimately be the phone with the best multitasking and AI experience rather than the thinnest device.
Command 9 — Watch Tablet Replacement Potential
If consumers increasingly use foldables instead of buying separate tablets, manufacturers will have a stronger reason to invest heavily in the category.
Command 10 — Compare Global Availability
A device that dominates one market but cannot be purchased elsewhere will have less influence on the global foldable race than its shipment numbers suggest.
Command 11 — Track Component Costs
Lower flexible-display and hinge costs could be the catalyst that finally pushes foldables into lower price brackets.
Command 12 — Watch the Premium Smartphone Market
Because foldables are primarily premium products, their growth will depend partly on consumers remaining willing to spend more on high-end smartphones.
Command 13 — Test the AI Argument
Manufacturers will increasingly use AI to justify large foldable displays. The important question is whether those features genuinely improve productivity or merely add marketing value.
Command 14 — Look Beyond Samsung
Samsung remains one of the strongest global foldable brands, but the latest market data shows that the future will not be determined by Samsung alone.
Command 15 — Judge the Category by Usefulness
The ultimate test is simple: does a foldable make everyday tasks easier, faster, or more enjoyable than a conventional smartphone?
✅ Foldable Shipments Are Expected to Reach 36 Million by 2028
Omdia forecasts global foldable smartphone shipments to reach approximately 36 million units in 2028, with annual growth of more than 20% through that period. The forecast represents more than double the 18.2 million units shipped in 2025.
✅ Book-Style Foldables Represented 69% of Shipments in H1 2026
Omdia reports that book-type foldables accounted for 69% of global foldable smartphone shipments during the first half of 2026. This confirms that the larger book-style format currently dominates the category.
✅ Flip-Style Shipments Fell 47%
The reported 47% year-over-year decline applies specifically to flip-style foldables during the first half of 2026. It should not be interpreted as a 47% decline for the entire foldable market.
✅ Huawei Led the Book-Style Segment
Omdia’s figures place Huawei at 57% of the book-style foldable market in H1 2026, followed by Samsung at 18%. Honor, Oppo, and Vivo followed with 9%, 7%, and 6%, respectively.
✅ Samsung Is in Second Place
Samsung’s 18% share puts it behind Huawei but ahead of the other individual manufacturers listed in Omdia’s ranking. The company therefore remains a major force despite no longer leading this particular segment.
❌ The Foldable Market Is Not Simply Growing Right Now
The broader statement that foldables are “growing” needs context. Global shipments actually declined 21.6% year over year in H1 2026 to 5.1 million units. Omdia expects a strong recovery later in the year, but the first-half numbers themselves were negative.
✅ 2026 Is Expected to Recover
Omdia forecasts that full-year 2026 foldable shipments will exceed 22 million units, with year-over-year growth recovering to more than 22%. This means the second half of 2026 is expected to be substantially stronger than the first half.
❌ Foldables Are Not About to Replace Conventional Smartphones
Even 36 million annual foldable shipments in 2028 would remain a relatively small share of the overall smartphone market. The forecast indicates rapid growth for a niche category, not the disappearance of conventional smartphones.
Prediction: (+1) Wide-Format Foldables Will Become the Main Premium Foldable Trend
(+1) Wide Screens Will Gain Momentum
Wide-format book-style foldables are likely to become one of the defining premium smartphone designs over the next two years because they address a genuine usability problem: how to make a large foldable comfortable when closed.
(+1) More Android Manufacturers Will Follow
If Samsung and Huawei demonstrate strong demand for the new proportions, competitors such as Honor, Oppo, and Vivo are likely to introduce comparable designs. Omdia already expects more Android brands to adopt wide-format designs in 2027.
(+1) Book-Style Devices Will Continue to Outperform Flips
The current 69% share of book-style foldables suggests that consumers are increasingly rewarding functionality over compactness. Unless flip devices discover a compelling new feature, book-style products should remain the stronger segment.
(+1) Samsung Will Remain a Top-Tier Competitor
Samsung’s 18% share, global distribution, premium ecosystem, and continued investment in foldables make it unlikely that the company will simply surrender the category to Huawei and Chinese rivals.
(+1) Foldables Will Become More Important to Premium Smartphone Strategies
As smartphone manufacturers face higher component costs and slower overall shipment growth, premium devices capable of generating greater revenue will become increasingly valuable. Foldables fit naturally into that strategy.
(+1) The 36 Million Shipment Target Is Achievable
The forecast is ambitious, but the combination of new form factors, additional manufacturers, improving technology, and greater consumer awareness makes substantial growth plausible. The biggest variable will be whether manufacturers can control prices while improving durability.
(+1) The Real Breakthrough Could Come From Software
Hardware innovation has reached a point where the next major leap may come from software that intelligently uses the additional display area. AI-powered multitasking could make foldables substantially more useful than today’s models.
Conclusion: The Foldable Future Is Bigger Than a Hinge
The latest Omdia data paints a fascinating picture of an industry that is simultaneously struggling and expanding. Foldable shipments declined sharply in the first half of 2026, yet the research firm expects the category to recover strongly and more than double its 2025 shipment volume by 2028.
The biggest lesson is that the future of foldables may not belong to the smallest device that folds. It may belong to the device that makes the best use of its ability to change shape.
Wide-format book-style phones are particularly interesting because they attempt to solve a fundamental weakness of earlier foldables: the compromise between a comfortable phone experience when closed and a large-screen experience when open.
Huawei has already demonstrated that
If manufacturers can make these devices thinner, lighter, tougher, more affordable, and smarter, the foldable smartphone could evolve from an expensive curiosity into one of the most important premium computing platforms of the next decade.
The race is no longer simply about who can build a phone that folds.
It is about who can convince consumers that a phone should fold in the first place.
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