According to a recent report by market research firm Trendforce, annual global shipments of foldable smartphones will increase to 18.5 million units in 2023, compared to 12.8 million units in 2022. With this trend, the market for hinges in OLED foldable smartphones is also growing and will reach US$500 million (approx. Rs.4,085 billion) this year. Foldable smartphones currently consist of teardrop hinges and U-shape hinges, and KH Vatech and S-connect are the main players in this sector. The foldable smartphone market includes flip-and-fold devices and is currently dominated by Samsung. The South Korean company introduced the Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 4 and Galaxy Z Fold 4 as the latest models in its foldable lineup last year.
the report from TrendForce said that global annual shipments of foldable smartphones, which include both flip and fold form factors, will reach 18.5 million units in 2023. Last year, 12.8 million units were shipped worldwide. According to the data shared by the company, Samsung enjoyed the lion’s share of the foldable smartphone market last year, with an 82 percent market share. Rising sales of foldable cellphones are also boosting the hinge market and the value of the global market for hinges used in foldable OLED smartphones will grow 14.6 percent year-on-year to reach over $500 million in 2023.
Teardrop and U-shaped hinges are commonly used in foldable smartphones and Samsung uses the latter. KH Vatech and S-connect are currently supplying hinges for the South Korean brand. Going forward, however, TrendForce predicts that Samsung will diversify its hinge suppliers to reduce costs. Amphenol and Asia Vital Components (AVC) are the suppliers of Teardrop Hinges. Other smartphone brands using these hinges achieved an overall market share of 20 percent in 2022.
With the increasing demand for foldable mobile phones, brands are looking for lightweight and strong composite materials for hinges to reduce the weight of the devices. TrendForce mentioned that Xiaomi mixed fold 2 is made of carbon fiber composite material and has a thickness of 11.2 mm when folded. the honor magic vs and Oppo Find N2 Also use the same materials.
The company also pointed out that panel manufacturers are also involved in the development of foldable smartphone hinges. CSOT has introduced a “semi-set” production flow that integrates an OLED display module with the necessary hinges, resulting in a one-piece component. These types of solutions speed up the product development cycle and ensure the optimization of the product.
According to TrendForce, creases are the issue most often raised by users of foldable devices. The report points out that the display of a foldable smartphone does not fold completely flat when closed. Based on the hinge design, the foldable display transforms into either a “U” or a waterdrop design. The latter has a larger allowable screen perimeter than a U-shaped hinge, and the corresponding crease is less visible.
