Galaxy Round: The Samsung smartphone with curved 5.7-inch screen
New smartphone will only be available in Korea
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.It looks like it can’t be real, but it is. Samsung has sent the latest shot across Apple’s bows in their struggle for dominance of the smartphone market: a device with a curved screen.
The new phone is a variant of the Galaxy Note, to be called the “Galaxy Round”, and it’s been designed more as a proof of concept than for the mass market.
Experts believe the Galaxy Round is more of a step on the way to wearable devices and flexible - perhaps even unbreakable - screens.
“It's a step forward for having unbreakable gadgets and flexible devices eventually. But for now, the new phone is more of a symbolic product," said Hana Daetoo Securities analyst Nam Dae-jong, adding that Samsung did not yet have capacity for large-scale production of curved touch-screens for the new Galaxy Round.
The phone’s key feature is its “roll effect”, a tilt function that allows users to roll the phone to check information like missed calls, battery life and other notifications, even when the screen is off.
The rest of the spec is solid: 5.7-inch OLED screen2.3GHz quad core processor, 3GB RAM, 32GB storage and a 2800mAh battery – all at 154g.
The phone will only be available in Korea for the time being, through South Korea's biggest mobile carrier, SK Telecom Co Ltd, at a cost of 1.089 million won (£630).
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies
Comments