Samsung is building a rollable phone — and it could actually ship in 2028

Samsung is planning to release its first rollable smartphone — reportedly called the Galaxy Slide or Galaxy Z Slide — in the first half of 2028, according to South Korean outlet mt.co. This isn't another concept shown behind glass at a trade show. Samsung Electronics officials have reportedly seen working panels from Samsung Display, making this the closest a rollable phone has come to an actual product launch.

Why Samsung is in a hurry

The timing is no accident. Samsung Display's share of the foldable OLED panel market collapsed from 41.8% in Q4 2025 to just 27% in Q1 2026, per Omdia data, as Chinese rivals — led by BOE — cut into its lead. Rollable displays are a segment where Samsung still holds an early advantage, and moving into that space now could help it stay ahead before competitors catch up.

Apple is also expected to enter the foldable market in 2026. A rollable phone, if Samsung can pull it off at scale, would give it a clear point of differentiation above anything Apple is likely to ship in the near term.

What we're looking at

Analyst firm Omdia projects the Galaxy Slide will feature a 10-inch display with a 16:9 aspect ratio and a pixel density of around 440.6 PPI — closer to a tablet than a typical phone when fully extended. A second-generation model is reportedly penciled in for 2030.

Samsung Display is already manufacturing rollable OLED panels commercially. It supplies them to Lenovo's ThinkBook Plus G6 Rollable laptop, which — despite a live-demo stumble at launch — proved the underlying technology works in a shipping product.

The engineering challenge is real, though. A rollable display has to survive thousands of extension cycles, maintain image sharpness at every size, scale content correctly as the screen changes shape, and hold up as a daily-carry device. LG tried and cancelled its own rollable phone before it ever reached consumers. Samsung's 2028 target suggests it isn't rushing — it appears to be waiting until the manufacturing and materials are solid enough to justify a retail launch.

No price, no confirmed availability yet

There are no confirmed prices, regional release details, or US carrier agreements at this stage. Given the complexity of the hardware, expect this to land firmly in ultra-premium territory — likely above current Galaxy Z Fold pricing. If the 2028 window holds, more concrete details should surface in 2027.