I would agree on the first 2-3 generations, but after 6-7, the tech is mature enough that it doesn’t get destroyed just like that. Didn’t we hade the same discussions when phones started using glass instead of plastic screens?`You do remember, screens used to be made of transparent plastic, not glass?

Yeah I have the flip 6. I upgraded from the flip 3 for a larger cover screen. No issues with either of them.

I like that it takes up less pocket space and most tasks can be done on the cover without opening the phone. The flipping is neat but honestly I’d rather have a modern 4-4.5 inch android slab. Too bad all the major phone manufacturers have switched to only making giant pocket tablets.

I still have my Z Flip 3 that I got when it released. About 2 years ago the screen protector came off at the hinge, and I removed it as I couldn’t stand the bubbles. Since then cracks have formed in the hinge and scratches on the lowet half of the screen. But it still works, that’s the only problem I have with it. If I do ever replace it it’s going to be to another flip phone, I love how small it gets when folded up.

My coworkers do. A woman uses a flipable, because it could fit in her pants’ pocket.

Another use a foldable as a tablet, but he mostly use it folded, unless he need to read a book or taking a note.

My teamlead had a Galaxy fold (the big one, not the flip-style) second-hand so it was cheap-ish. She liked it, unfortunately she broke it (though not in a fold-specific way iirc). She now uses a regular slab phone due to the price difference.

I’ve seen her phone and a display model in the store, the crease really doesn’t look that bothersome to me. I’d buy one if I could (somewhat) easily install another OS on it, if my current phone breaks or loses support for my apps. Assuming that they stick around and the price won’t be as exorbitant in a year or two, that is…

I’ve owned a Galaxy fold 2, 3, and currently on a five. I don’t think I can ever go back to a regular phone they’re just fantastic

I have the same fears about them and would personally never buy them, but the people I spoke who have one all said that they had no issues and loved the screen size. Personally I wouldn’t feel comfortable using it knowing that a single grain of sand in the wrong place can fuck it all up. But apparently it’s not too bad, at least anecdotally.

My last support worker had a samsung z flip or whatever it is. the one that is a normal phone size, but it folds in half. She reported no issues with it.

a friend has one of the massive samsung(?) phones that folds out to a huge screen

he loves having that much screen to use and not reported any particular problems

I was thinking about getting one like the Nokia flip but they cost a bit and the hinge seems like a weak point. Got a CatB40 instead which wasn’t much more and far more durable. Though showing signs of age at this point with multiple chips to the back of it from around the screws holding on the back.

I have a Motorola razr 2023. It’s absolutely great.

The use case is that it fits in your pocket.

i have actually never seen one in the wild.

I’ve owned a Z Fold 5 for a little over a year. I’m a developer and often read dev articles, todos, code on a git repo and so on while traveling by buss/train. I find a regular screen size isn’t wide enough for reading code, but the z fold 5 unfolded is perfect. I don’t want to have to carry a tablet, and I definitely don’t want to pull my laptop out just for reading. I definitely won’t be going back to a non-foldable.

The inner screen definitely isn’t as fragile as you make it out to be. Can’t see any scratches on mine. It’s way more of a fingerprint magnet than my outer screen, but I can’t see that when the screens on, and the rest of the time it’s closed and hidden anyway, so why would I care?

I have a Galaxy Z Fold 2 and it’s my favorite phone I’ve ever owned by a mile. I bought it secondhand (refurbished) in 2022, two years after it came out, and have been using it for three years myself.

There’s sort of a crease down the center of the folding screen that you can see if you’re looking for it specifically, but if you’re looking at the phone head-on like you usually would be and aren’t trying to pay attention to the crease, it fades right out of awareness.

I bought this phone with the intention of reading books on it, and playing some games that are otherwise more tablet-friendly (Slay The Spire for instance) and it’s by far the best mobile reading and gaming experience I’ve ever had with a phone.

If I wanted to I could have the screen replaced to remove the crease but it doesn’t bother me enough to pay for that. I’ve folded this phone open and closed probably a minimum of two dozen times per day every single day for the past 3 years and I’ve never had to replace a part yet. When I bought the thing I expected it to be usable for about 1-2 years and then need repair or replacement, but we’re now cooking on the third year of daily use and it still looks as good as it did in year 1.

This very post was made on that phone and was folded and reopened twice in the process as I did other things.

I’ve got one. Moto Razr.

It fits in my pocket much better than a slab phone.

I don’t use the outer screen much. Generally when I need to fumble around and change media or unlock my car or something with stuff in my other hand. But Moto’s implementation of the second screen is pretty good.

I like a very large screen and I like portability. If this phone breaks, I’ll probably get either another one like it or a larger one like a Pixel Fold or something.

The solution to the fragile inner screen is - and I know this is a complex idea so bear with me - you close the phone when you’re not actively using it. Seriously, it’s a complete non-issue.

My biggest complaint is the Moto software. I’ve had other Moto phones before and had similar issues - they’re WAY too aggressive with battery optimizations killing background apps. Like holy shit. I have to go in every few days and reset settings that the phone changed on its own so that my VPN stays connected for more than 10 minutes at a time because it wants to kill the app to save battery. But that has nothing to do with the screen.