Samsung Electronics Co., the world’s largest smartphone maker, will welcome the move by its rival Apple Inc. if it releases a foldable device, said Choi Won-joon, executive vice president at the South Korean tech giant.

“We will naturally welcome Apple if it advances into the foldable market,” Choi told reporters at Mobile World Congress (MWC) that kicked off in Barcelona, Spain, on Monday.

Choi, head of mobile R&D office at mobile eXperience (MX) business, was in charge of the development of Samsung Electronics’ latest flagship Galaxy S23 series.

“It means that not only Chinese players but also Apple approves of the value of foldable phones that Samsung Electronics opened and that they will be enjoyed by more people,” Choi said.

He also welcomed the launch of foldable devices by Chinese rivals like Huawei and Oppo as it will help more people engage in the consumer experience unique to foldable phones.

“Samsung Electronics will focus on playing a key role in making foldable phones more popular rather than focus on the competitors,” he said.

When it comes to the development of a new device that goes beyond smartphones, Choi said that the company isn’t pursuing “a change for the sake of change,” although it is continuously engaged in the research on various forms of device categories.

Choi, with regards to the Galaxy S23 sales, said that the company is on track of achieving the target of double-digit growth versus the predecessor as announced during the Unpacked event.

“Consumer expectations on smartphones are growing, and we believe that the area that requires the strongest performance is games,” Choi said. “We put out efforts to improve performance such as heat dissipation and battery life.”

By Pulse

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