Samsung introduces a three-screen smartphone.

A phone on the outside, a tablet on the inside: Samsung has unveiled a smartphone with a triple screen. It is simultaneously super-thin, extremely thick, and costly.

It is a large smartphone for a small niche: On Tuesday, Samsung unveiled its first double-folding smartphone, the Galaxy Z TriFold, in Seoul. Unlike conventional foldables, it has two hinges, allowing a ten-inch screen to unfold almost as large as an iPad's.

From the outside, this feature of the device is hardly noticeable. On the front, there is a 6.5-inch screen, similar to what is found on many current smartphones.

According to Samsung, the TriFold is scheduled to go on sale on December 12th, initially only in South Korea. The price is listed at 3.59 million won, roughly equivalent to 2,100 euros. 

A triple battery is designed to provide long battery life.

The design of the foldable screen, including the two different hinges, appears technologically sophisticated. The three housing components are fragile at 4.2, 4.0, and 3.9 millimetres. Yet each one contains a battery. The combined capacity of the three batteries is an impressive 5600 milliampere-hours (mAh), significantly more than the 4400 mAh available in the Galaxy Z Fold 7

However, some of that is likely taken up by the large fold-out display. With a resolution of 2160 × 1584 pixels, it's on par with a tablet and is designed to be used as such. For example, you can run three smartphone apps side-by-side, arrange multiple apps in windows across the screen, or use one app in full-screen mode.

One unique feature: Samsung's DeX system can be used on the TriFold without an external monitor. The company positions DeX as a way to use smartphones like PCs for office work. Combined with a Bluetooth keyboard, the three-screen phone could become a mobile workstation.

Not exactly slim

Given all this effort, it's surprising that the high-end device still uses the same chip as the Galaxy S25, which has been on the market for almost a year. Chip manufacturer Qualcomm has long since unveiled a successor model, and companies like Xiaomi are already incorporating it into their smartphones.

It's less surprising that, despite its high-tech construction and three ultra-slim body panels, the Galaxy Z TriFold is quite bulky overall. When folded, it measures 12.9 millimetres, almost 5 millimetres thicker than the non-folding Galaxy S25 Ultra. Weighing in at 309 grams, it's also likely to feel rather heavy in a pocket.

Second place, first place

The Galaxy Z TriFold demonstrates once again how strongly Samsung believes that foldable smartphones will one day be the next big thing. The company has been committed to this idea for six years. Nevertheless, these so-called foldables have so far only achieved a market share of two to three per cent, which the Koreans have to share with companies like Huawei and Honor.

In the race to be the first to release a triple-screen smartphone, Samsung has already been beaten by Huawei. The Chinese company first unveiled its Mate XT in China more than a year ago, and then again in March 2025 at the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona. Although a price in euros was initially announced – €3,500 – it is still not available through traditional retailers.

It remains to be seen how widely available the Galaxy Z TriFold will be when it launches, presumably in January, in countries outside South Korea. However, high sales figures are unlikely to be Samsung's primary motivation for this model. Instead, the focus will likely be on showcasing the company's capabilities and highlighting its technological lead over the competition.

Rumors that Apple plans to unveil a foldable iPhone next year could also play a role. If that actually happens, Samsung would have a stronger trump card with its TriFold.

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