If you are experiencing a particularly cold winter where you are, you can leave your foldable phone at home. According to Sam Mobile, the Samsung Galaxy Fold and Galaxy Z Flip break in the face of the bitterly cold temperature of 18 degrees Celsius.
The photos above show what is apparently happening to those who have taken out their folds in the cold. While there is no visible crack, it is clear that the devices are unusable, with bright spots in place of the Android operating system.
While it is impossible to verify that it was a sudden cold explosion that turned these devices into very expensive paper weights, it goes without saying that the temperature below zero would do strange things to foldable things. The technology in folding phones involves different layers and materials, and cold temperatures can lead to fragility which can affect the functionality of the foldability.
It is not clear what kind of protection buyers will have against their Galaxy Folds and Flips due to cold weather. While Samsung released a video with lots of tips for taking care of your first foldable back in 2019, there was no talk of using it in extreme temperatures, although the international manual of the latest Galaxy Z Fold 2 contains the following warning:
“The device can be used in places with an ambient temperature of 0 ° C to 35 ° C. You can store the device at an ambient temperature of -10 ° C to 50 ° C. If you use the device outside the recommended temperature ranges or storage, it may damage or reduce battery life. ”
This is a cover for the company, although it mainly refers to battery life rather than the screen. In theory, owners of Samsung’s Galaxy Fold and Galaxy Z devices should take advantage of the Samsung Premier protection service, which specifically includes a one-time screen replacement at an ‘exclusive rate’ in the first year of ownership. However, as this is not a clear crack, it is not clear that it is eligible.
For now, these are just a small number of cases, and may simply be the result of a less reliable group, or completely unrelated factors. On the other hand, this winter is unusual with so many home orders in the face of Coronavirus. If more people were on the way, would we see more reports of broken folders?