AT&T cancels pre-orders for the Galaxy Fold after Samsung takes too long to launch the $2,000 device
- AT&T has become the latest retailer to cancel orders of Samsung’s Galaxy Fold
- Best Buy and Samsung have also canceled orders of the $1,980 folding phone
- Samsung was meant to launch the device in April but postponed it indefinitely
- Since then, the Korean tech giant said the Fold will launch in the ‘coming weeks’
AT&T is the latest retailer to cancel orders of Samsung’s beleaguered folding phone.
The telecom giant started sending out notices to consumers this week, informing them that their orders of the $1,980 Galaxy Fold were cancelled, according to Tom’s Guide.
Last month, Best Buy canceled Galaxy Fold pre-orders, while Samsung also announced it would cancel pre-orders of the device.
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AT&T is the latest retailer to cancel orders of Samsung’s folding phone. The firm started sending out notices to consumers this week, saying their Fold orders were cancelled
‘Unfortunately, Samsung delayed the release of the Fold, which means we can’t ship your phone and have to cancel your pre-order,’ AT&T wrote in a note to consumers, Tom’s Guide reported.
‘Once Samsung announces the new release date, you can visit att.com to place your order again.’
In the meantime, AT&T is giving affected customers a $100 promotion card.
AT&T had told consumers in April it expected the Fold to ship on June 13th, according to the Verge.
Since then, little has changed with the Galaxy Fold and it’s still unclear when it will be ready to ship.
The Galaxy Fold was supposed to ship on April 26th, but Samsung was forced to cancel the launch after several review units broke after just one or two days of testing.
Users said the display began to flicker and turn black before becoming completely unusable.
The issues are believed to stem from the hinge causing too much pressure on the screen.
More than one month after it was postponed, Samsung may finally be ready to launch its folding phone. The Korean tech giant expects to announce a launch date in the ‘coming weeks’
Additionally, a 7mm gap between where the two display halves meet invites dust, dirt and other damaging particles to get trapped underneath the display.
Some said they had removed a protective layer on the screen that was supposed to stay on.
Meanwhile, others said they didn’t remove the protective film, but the device still stopped working.
Samsung has pledged to make improvements to the device to prevent these issues from recurring.
Earlier this week, the company told CNET that it expects to announce a launch date for the Fold in the ‘coming weeks.’
The company stopped short of announcing a specific launch date or many details about whether or not the device will differ from the version it first announced.
It means that prospective buyers will have to wait until July or possibly even later to get their hands on a Galaxy Fold.
WHAT HAPPENED TO THE GALAXY FOLD?
Samsung debuted the $2,000 Galaxy Fold to great fanfare in February.
But journalists who received review units ahead of the Fold launch in late April reported experiencing issues with the interior screen.
After just one or two days of use, users said the display began to flicker and turn black before becoming completely unusable.
Last week, journalists who received review units ahead of the Fold launch reported experiencing issues with the interior screen. The display would flicker and go black
The issues are believed to stem from the hinge causing too much pressure on the screen.
Some said they had removed a protective layer on the screen that was supposed to stay on.
Meanwhile, others said they didn’t remove the protective film, but the device still stopped working.
YouTube user Marques Brownlee said he removed the protective film and his device began having issues
A warning on the Galaxy Fold packaging instructs users not to remove the protective layer, according to a photo posted by T-Mobile Senior Product Manager Desmond Smith.
‘The main screen includes a special protective layer,’ it reads. ‘Peeling off the protective layer or using any adhesives on the main screen, such as screen protectors or stickers, may cause damage.’
Bloomberg reporter Mark Gurman said his Galaxy Fold started operating abnormally after he removed the film and eventually became unusable.
Additionally, YouTube user Marques Brownlee said he removed the protective film and his device began having issues.
But Dieter Bohn, executive editor of technology news site The Verge, says he left that layer on and his screen still broke.
The issues raise questions about whether or not the Galaxy Fold can withstand normal use.
