Samsung’s Galaxy Z Flip 5, Fold 5 pre-sales twice as high as predecessors

Employees are looking at the Galaxy Z Flip 5 and Fold 5 at KT Plaza in Seoul, on July 31. [Photo by Kim Ho-young]

Samsung Electronics Co. has seen a remarkable surge in pre-sales for its latest foldable phones, the Galaxy Z Flip 5 and Fold 5, with figures twice as high as their predecessors.

Samsung Electronics kicked off the pre-sales of the Galaxy Z Flip 5 and Fold 5 with a live broadcast on its official website Samsung.com from Tuesday midnight until 1:40 a.m. the following day. During this event, both models achieved more than 1.9 times the sales figures of the previous year’s Galaxy Z Flip 4 and Fold 4. The sales distribution on that day showed the Galaxy Z Flip 5 accounting for 70 percent of sales and the Galaxy Fold 5 for 30 percent. Additionally, the 1TB version of the Fold 5 made up 35 percent of total Fold 5 pre-sales, indicating a strong consumer preference for high-capacity storage.

Samsung is offering a special pre-sale benefit called Double Storage, upgrading the 256GB model to a 512GB model at no extra cost. Due to this promotion, the 512GB version is not on the pre-sale list.

Currently, the Galaxy Z Flip 5 is available in eight colors on Samsung.com, including Mint, Cream, Lavender, and Graphite. The Galaxy Fold 5 comes in five colors, with Ice Blue, Cream, and Phantom Black as the standard options, along with Grey and Blue, exclusive for online purchasers.

Regarding carrier subsidies, the major telecom companies are providing varying levels of support. For the Galaxy Z Flip 5, SK telecom offers subsidies ranging from 287,000 to 480,000 won ($230-$380), KT from 156,000 to 650,000 won, and LG Uplus from 175,000 to 500,000 won.

As for the Galaxy Fold 5, SK telecom offers subsidies from 131,000 to 170,000 won, KT from 50,000 to 240,000 won, and LG Uplus from 52,000 to 230,000 won. In comparison, KT stands out with more aggressive marketing efforts despite the CEO vacancy.

An industry insider said that the Galaxy Z Flip 5 subsidies remain unchanged from the previous year, while the Galaxy Fold 5 subsidies have decreased by about 200,000 won. Consequently, the prices of the Galaxy Z Flip 5 and Fold 5 have increased by 50,000 won and 300,000 won, respectively, compared to the previous models. The current retail prices for the Galaxy Z Flip 5 and Fold 5 are 1,520,200 won and 2,218,700 won, respectively.

Industry experts speculate that the significant price increase in the Galaxy Fold 5 may be the result of Samsung Electronics’ strategy to focus on the sales of the Galaxy Z Flip 5.

Considering the 5G unlimited data plan, the total monthly payment for the Galaxy Z Flip 5 with a two-year contract is around 130,000 won, depending on carrier subsidies.

With the pre-sales running from the first seven days of this month, all eyes are on whether Samsung can surpass one million units sold for the Galaxy Z Flip 5 and Fold 5 during this period.