Samsung's next-generation foldables are here | The Vergecast Livestream

Summary of Samsung's next-generation foldables are here | The Vergecast Livestream

by The Verge

53m•July 22, 2026
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Overview of Samsung's next-generation foldables are here | The Vergecast Livestream

The Vergecast crew reacts to Samsung’s latest Unpacked event, focusing on the company’s new foldables, watches, AI features, and broader ecosystem strategy. Their biggest takeaway: Samsung finally made a coherent case for why foldables exist at all. The new devices are framed around distinct use cases—content consumption, multitasking, and “put it away” convenience—rather than just novelty. But despite the strong hardware pitch, the hosts remain skeptical about pricing, naming chaos, and whether these devices will actually break out of the enthusiast niche.

Samsung’s Foldables: Samsung Finally Explains the Point

The “wide” foldable

  • The hosts are most intrigued by the new wider foldable design.
  • Their view: it looks odd in photos, but people who’ve used it say it feels surprisingly natural in hand.
  • Samsung’s pitch:
    • Outside screen: normal phone use for short-form video and social apps.
    • Inside screen: a more immersive 4:3-like layout for content, comments, and creation.
  • The hosts liked that Samsung tied the design to real behaviors, like watching Reels/Shorts, reading comments, and editing content side by side.

The “tall” foldable

  • Samsung positions the taller foldable as a productivity-first device.
  • The idea is better split-screen multitasking, not primarily media consumption.
  • The hosts think this distinction between “content phone” and “work phone” is actually useful, even if it’s a bit artificial.

The flip phone

  • The flip is framed as the “put it away” phone:
    • Smaller, more disciplined use.
    • Better suited to quick interactions, summaries, and agentic AI.
  • The hosts see this as Samsung’s attempt to make phone use feel more intentional, though they’re skeptical that AI really changes the experience yet.

AI, Gemini, and the Future of Phone Use

  • A major theme of the event was AI, especially Gemini automation.
  • Samsung and Google are leaning hard into “agentic” tasks like:
    • Travel planning
    • Reservations
    • Event tickets
    • Shopping and transactions
  • The hosts note that current AI demos mostly reduce to “buy stuff for me.”
  • Their take:
    • Samsung did a better job than usual explaining the hardware.
    • AI still doesn’t have a compelling enough everyday story.
    • Foldables may become the best interface for AI because they create a smaller, more manageable front-end with a larger screen when needed.

Battery Chemistry, Durability, and the Big Technical Leap

  • One of the most interesting announcements was Samsung’s use of silicon-carbon battery technology.
  • Why it matters:
    • Potentially higher capacity
    • Better efficiency
    • Smaller form factors
    • Possibly longer-term battery gains across the industry
  • Samsung was careful and conservative in how it used the new chemistry, which the hosts think is wise given the company’s Note 7 battery history.
  • Their concern:
    • New chemistry is exciting, but battery longevity and safety are still unknowns.
    • A $2,000+ phone with faster degradation would be hard to justify.
  • Still, they see this as a meaningful step forward and possibly a preview of what will come to mainstream Galaxy S phones.

Galaxy Watches, Health Tracking, and Ecosystem Lock-In

Galaxy Watch and Watch Ultra

  • Samsung introduced a standard Galaxy Watch update and a new Watch Ultra.
  • The Watch Ultra is aimed at outdoors and diving users, with:
    • Larger battery
    • Diving-related features
    • Better endurance claims
  • The hosts were more interested in the battery gains than the styling, which they found bulky and awkward.

Health as the real battleground

  • Samsung is trying to turn wearables into “capital-H health devices.”
  • The hosts note that:
    • Everyone is chasing Whoop-style health tracking.
    • Screenless or low-screen devices may be the future of health monitoring.
    • The most compelling smartwatch features are health-related, but the software ecosystems are still fragmented.

Ecosystem reality

  • Once you buy a phone, you’re usually locked into its ecosystem.
  • That means Samsung’s watches, glasses, and AI features only really matter if you’re already using a Samsung phone.
  • The hosts think Samsung is doing a better job of making the ecosystem feel connected, but it still isn’t enough to overcome platform lock-in for most people.

Main Takeaways

  • Samsung’s biggest win is not just the hardware—it’s that it finally explained what each foldable is for.
  • The wide foldable seems like the most promising form factor, especially for content and AI-assisted use.
  • The tall foldable is more productivity-oriented, while the flip is about quick interactions and restraint.
  • Price remains the biggest barrier:
    • The ultra foldable is around $2,100.
    • The hosts repeatedly say these devices are still “science projects” at those prices.
  • Samsung’s battery work is genuinely exciting, but still early and unproven.
  • The watch lineup is evolving toward health-first devices, though the design remains divisive.
  • The hosts believe the foldable category may finally be approaching a real mainstream argument—but only if prices fall and the software experience keeps improving.

Final Verdict from the Conversation

Samsung’s event felt more mature than usual: less gimmick, more product reasoning. The hosts were impressed that Samsung made a serious case for its foldables and acknowledged the real-world ways people use phones. But they also agreed that, for now, these are still premium niche devices with too many compromises, too much ecosystem lock-in, and prices that keep them out of reach for most buyers.