Samsung confirms ‘Unpacked’ event for August 10: Here’s what to expect

After days of speculation surrounding the official date, Samsung sent out an official invite to its “Unpacked” event on Wednesday, confirming that the product launch event will take place on August 10. The event will start at 9:00 am ET or 6:30 pm IST and will be streamed on Samsung’s YouTube channel.

The South Korean behemoth didn’t explicitly detail which products will debut next month; however, Samsung will likely debut at least two new foldable smartphones, possibly the Galaxy Z Flip 4 and Galaxy Z Fold 4. Both foldable phones are highly anticipated among Samsung fans, especially the Galaxy Z Flip 4. The invite more or less confirms the arrival of the Galaxy Z Flip 4, which will succeed last year’s Galaxy Z Flip 3 which was a commercial hit.

Samsung has been putting a lot of effort to make foldable smartphones become mainstream. Its Galaxy Z Flip 3 had a starting price of $1000 and improved durability to appeal to average consumers. The Galaxy Z Fold 3, meanwhile, sits on top of Samsung’s Galaxy smartphone line, both in terms of price and perception. The phone came with a 6.2-inch display that unfolds into a 7.6in-screen tablet. It also had a selfie camera underneath the flexible display, making it practically invisible to the user

Despite a larger push from Samsung, foldable phones remain a niche and are yet to make people excited about the new phone form factor. Motorola and Huawei also have a lineup of foldable phones on the market.

Samsung insiders and industry experts expect the company to announce two new smartwatches at the next month’s Unpacked event. The high-end watch could be called the Galaxy Watch 5 Pro. It will have a more rugged design and will supposedly come in titanium. The smartwatch will reportedly be less mechanical and ditch the rotating bezel. The Galaxy Watch Pro 5 will take on Cupertino’s rumoured Apple Watch Pro will differentiate itself with a larger and more shatter-resistant screen, tougher body with a rugged case and longer battery life. The rugged Apple Watch have a case size between 46mm and 47mm and pricing could start as high as around $900 or $999, according to Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman.