Competition in the foldable phone market is shifting toward "crease-free displays", but the improvements consumers actually want may be battery and camera upgrades and overall build quality, a criticism has emerged. While the industry focuses on removing screen creases, the analysis says the factors users feel most may lie elsewhere.

On April 27, IT outlet PhoneArena reported that major manufacturers including Samsung Electronics and Apple are striving to deliver completely flat foldable displays, but the market's priorities are not necessarily limited to that.

The foldable industry currently treats how much it can reduce fold marks on inner displays as a key competitive factor. Samsung Electronics' next Galaxy Z Fold series and Oppo's Find N series are also said to be focusing on improving crease-mitigation technology.

Still, there is an assessment that virtually no product on the market has implemented an inner screen that is fully flat. Recent models have shallower creases than previous generations, but have not reached a fully crease-free stage.

In the early foldable market, core demand came from consumers who wanted larger screens and distinctive designs even if they had to accept creases and durability issues. Devices later became thinner, durability improved and performance increased. In particular, recently released foldables are being assessed as offering an experience on par with flagship smartphones.

The issue is competitiveness in the next stage. The analysis says it is becoming a new challenge to decide which elements manufacturers will concentrate development resources on going forward. PhoneArena criticised the industry for still focusing excessively on a "crease-free experience" instead of factors such as larger battery capacity, stronger camera performance, heat management, gaming performance, speaker quality and software optimisation.

There is also speculation that Samsung Electronics and Apple are putting considerable resources into achieving fully crease-free foldables. But the more a company focuses on developing a particular technology, the more likely other component upgrades will be pushed down the priority list. In fact, there is a possibility that Samsung Electronics will skip key component upgrades for its next Galaxy Z Fold and Z Flip series for a third consecutive year. It could keep older M13 OLED materials instead of moving to M14.

Market sentiment is also changing. In the early foldable market, creases themselves were seen as a decisive weakness that determined product completeness, but there is now a growing perception that "somewhat shallower creases are acceptable".

Price is also a variable. Even if fully crease-free foldables appear, there is a view that price 부담 could grow at first due to high manufacturing costs.

The industry is ultimately watching the possibility that foldable phone competition may not remain limited to crease removal alone. The analysis says real user experience factors such as battery life, camera quality, heat management and software stability could emerge as the next competitive points. As a result, there is a growing possibility that the next battleground in the foldable market will shift from display technology itself to competition over overall product completeness.