Are you excited about the return of flip phones? Do you find yourself on the prowl for foldable phone deals? Who would have imagined? Will 8-tracks be next? Certainly following the smartphone revolution in the aughts, few of us might have imagined that the venerable flip phone would ever make a comeback. Yet it has — or rather, foldable phones have, as new flexible LCD screens have allowed makers like Samsung and Microsoft to flip traditional smartphone design on its head (pun intended). It’s no secret that foldable phone deals are not as common as standard smartphone deals and it’s no mystery why, given that this technology involved is on the bleeding edge of things. But there are almost always savings to be had if you know where to look. To get you started, we’ve gathered up all of the best foldable phone deals available right now. And if you’re still not 100% sure that one of these unique mobile devices is for you, we’ll also offer some insight to help you make the right decision, below.
The best foldable phone deals you can shop today
Looking to find some excellent foldable phone deals, on a variety of brands? We have you covered. You can check out our top deal picks below.
How to choose a foldable phone
If you’re curious about foldable phone deals but you don’t even know what to start looking for, you’re not alone. Folding smartphones still inhabit a new product niche, and although the surface-level comparisons to the decades-old flip phone design are obvious, these modern mobile devices are very different.
At their most basic, folding smartphones are just that: smartphones that fold in half. They sport touchscreens and mobile hardware just like a traditional smartphone and run the same apps as their non-folding counterparts. Just know that, as of yet, there is no folding iPhone — those shopping through foldable phone sales are currently stuck with Android. On the bright side, you shouldn’t have to worry about your folding smartphone being incompatible with any Android-compatible software you’re already familiar with, although some models might come loaded with some unique software features designed for the folding display.
If you’re cool with Android, then that simplifies things a bit as your only real decision will be which of the best folding phones you want from among any available foldable phone deals. Only a few brands make folding smartphones right now — namely Samsung, Microsoft, and Motorola, and there are rumors about a Google Pixel Fold coming down the pipe soon — and they follow one of two design philosophies. Models like the Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 3 and the Motorola Razr open vertically like the classic flip phones of decades past. Others, like the Galaxy Fold and Microsoft Surface Duo, open sideways like a book.
The Galaxy Z Flip and Motorola Razr are essentially standard smartphones that fold down. When opened, they are about the same size as a regular phone, although the touchscreen displays are a bit longer (that is, the vertical resolution is higher compared to a typical smartphone display). When folded, they are about the size of a small bifold wallet, making them more pocket-friendly than both standard smartphones and other folding phones like the Surface Duo. If you’re poking through foldable phone sales and you like these designs for their compact size, these are the models to keep on high your watchlist.
Sideways-folding designs like the Samsung Galaxy Fold 3 are more like two smartphones sandwiched together. When closed, they’re about the same length and width as a regular phone, but obviously thicker. When deployed, however, that folding screen offers roughly double the real estate as a standard phone display, allowing you to use it almost like a small tablet. If size and thickness aren’t as much of a concern and you’d like the utility that these plus-sized touch displays provide, keep an eye out for units like the Galaxy Fold and Surface Duo in your search for foldable phone deals.
Maybe you’re really old-school and you want to ditch the touchscreen altogether in favor of a classic, no-nonsense flip phone sporting a keypad. Believe it or not, they’re still being made. In fact, there are a surprising number of brands still offering them. They’re great for kids, seniors, and anybody looking for a digital detox from smartphones. They’re cheap, too, as you’d expect. Check out our roundup of the best flip phones to see some specific names to look for when shopping through foldable phone sales.
This burgeoning mobile niche is likely to expand greatly over the next few years, so you can count on more brands throwing their hats into the folding smartphone ring. There are already some makers like Huawei and Xiaomi making flip smartphones exclusively for the Chinese market and we imagine that it won’t be very long before these names start offering these foldable phone deals in Western markets as well. TCL has even been experimenting with a trifold phone. Apple has also hinted that it’s experimenting with folding designs (which should be good news for the iOS crowd), but in the meantime, these folding smartphone sales are the best way to give one a spin.
