Foldable Pre-Order Begins... 'Z Flip3' Official Subsidy Confirmed Up to 500,000 KRW

Samsung Electronics unveiled the foldable smartphones 'Galaxy Z Fold3' and 'Galaxy Z Flip3' at 'Galaxy Unpacked 2021'. On the 12th, customers visiting the Samsung Delight Shop in Seocho-gu, Seoul, are seen exploring the new products. The newly released products will be available for pre-order in Korea from the 17th to the 23rd and are scheduled for a global sequential release on the 27th. Photo by Hyunmin Kim kimhyun81@

[Asia Economy Reporter Joselgina] Samsung Electronics' 3rd generation foldable smartphone, the 'Galaxy Z Flip3,' which has entered pre-opening, has confirmed a maximum official subsidy of 500,000 KRW. Accordingly, the actual purchase price drops to the high 600,000 KRW range. For the concurrently unveiled 'Galaxy Z Fold3,' a maximum subsidy of 240,000 KRW is provided.

According to the telecommunications industry on the 24th, SK Telecom announced the official subsidies for the Z Flip3 by plan on the pre-opening day of the new foldable phone, ranging from 255,000 to 500,000 KRW. This amount is the same as previously announced during the pre-order period. KT and LG Uplus also provide official subsidies up to 500,000 KRW.

Including additional distribution network subsidies, the actual purchase price of the Z Flip3 drops to around 670,000 KRW. The Z Flip3's retail price is 1,254,000 KRW, about 400,000 KRW cheaper than its predecessor.

The official subsidy for the other new foldable phone, the Z Fold3, is confirmed at a maximum of 240,000 KRW. By carrier, SK Telecom offers 170,000 KRW, KT 240,000 KRW, and LG Uplus 230,000 KRW. The Z Fold3 is priced at 1,998,700 KRW for the 256GB model, marking the first time the Z Fold series is launched in the 1 million KRW range. However, the announced subsidy is far less than that of the Z Flip3. The actual purchase price including additional subsidies is around 1.8 million KRW. The official subsidy combines smartphone manufacturer and carrier subsidies and varies according to each company's sales strategy.

Samsung Electronics is focusing on popularizing foldable phones this second half of the year instead of releasing the popular 'Galaxy Note' product line. The Z Fold3 and Z Flip3 are estimated to have recorded sales exceeding 800,000 units during the one-week pre-order period ending the day before. The official release date is the 27th.

Meanwhile, on the foldable phone pre-opening day, KT and LG Uplus lowered the official subsidies for the 'Galaxy S21 Ultra' model, which had a maximum subsidy of 700,000 KRW, to 240,000 KRW and 230,000 KRW respectively. The subsidy for the S21 Ultra model has changed three times at weekly intervals since the end of July. This is interpreted as a strategy to heavily increase subsidies to clear S21 Ultra inventory ahead of the new foldable phone launch and then reduce them again to coincide with the pre-opening day.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.