Samsung might have to retract its claims of having an Ultra Thin ‘Glass’ display on its latest Galaxy Z Flip foldable phone. What was seen as a break-through innovation from the company during the announcement has now been put to test by re-known phone reviewer Zack Nelson on his JerryRigEverything channel in his lastest YouTube video. Until now, foldable screens have used plastic displays, which can be easily scratched with even a fingernail.
The Galaxy Z Flip making the switch to glass as Samsung reported might have been debunked. The results of his JerryRigEverything durability test do not inspire confidence.
The Galaxy Z Flip’s display starts showing permanent marks and scratches far earlier than actual glass would. Part of the tried and true JerryRigEverything test is putting phones through a gauntlet of Mohs hardness picks to test when the display glass starts showing damage. If you’ve watched Zack’s videos before, you’ve likely heard that modern smartphones have “scratches starting at a level 6, with deeper grooves at a level 7.”
Anticipating for the Galaxy Z Flip to last till at least level 4, it starts picking up damage at level 2 and more significantly at 3, which is on par with the plastic screens of the Galaxy Fold and more recent Motorola Razr. “This screen is in no way scratch resistant whatsoever,” Nelson says near the end of the video. At the end of the clip, he begins poking holes in the screen that make the OLED panel go on the fritz — but there’s no sign of any glass fracturing.
When launching the Galaxy Z Flip, Samsung was clear to come out to assure the audience how it was glass. On the brightside, Samsung will offer a screen replacement service for the Z Flip as it did with the Galaxy Fold. It will. Z Flip buyers can get a one-time screen replacement for $119, Samsung says.
Samsung could be using a hybrid plastic polymer (with microscopic bits of glass mixed in) so it can advertise this display as “glass.” But if it really can be scratched this easily, what seemed like a significant selling point for the $1,380 Galaxy Z Flip is starting to look like a marketing gimmick.
