Watch Samsung's Torture Tests That Ensure Folding Galaxy Z Fold3 And Flip3 Durability
It is easy to take for granted that our premium-designed smartphones just work as expected, and won't fall apart like some cheap gadget picked up from the clearance bin at the local thrift shop. And for the most part, they do dutifully operate to expectations. It takes a lot of design chops and testing to achieve the kind of durability necessary for daily use, and providing a rare glimpse of what goes into the latter, Samsung has partially lifted the curtain to reveal some of its testing procedures.
Companies don't often provide behind-the-scene looks at how the sausage is made. Or in this case, how it is deemed ready for public consumption. Samsung chose the perfect time to make an exception, though, on the heels of launching its Galaxy Z Fold3 and Galaxy Z Flip3 smartphones, both built around a folding display form factor (but in very different ways).
Part of the challenge is that the folding handset form factor is still relatively new. We saw some initial growing pains with Samsung's first Galaxy Fold, but to the company's credit, things have improved substantially since then. That's partially a result of improved testing (and of course refined engineering).
"To produce the durable, dependable foldables our users have come to love, we had to design an innovative way of developing and testing the devices. With no time-tested blueprint to follow, we spent years conducting thousands of trials, relying on diverse perspectives and developing a fresh new approach," Samsung explains.
"As a result, we have been able to develop all-new materials like Armor Aluminum, and optimize existing components on the layers of the display panel to maintain the highest durability standards yet," Samsung adds.
The short video above takes us through some of the torture tests Samsung's latest folding devices undergo, to ensure they are ready for prime time. According to Samsung, it's Galaxy Z handsets are tested to outlast 200,000 folds. That works out to around five years of endurance if you were to fold and unfold a Galaxy Z handset 100 times each day.
Samsung's folding tests are designed not just to fold and unfold Galaxy Z devices hundreds of thousands of times in a mundane manner, but do so in ways that reflect actual usage patters, such as using both hands. These phones also get put under the wringer for water resistance, different temperatures and humidity levels, S Pen usage, and more.
Neat stuff for sure, and hat tip to Samsung for the inside look.
