A newer, more affordable Galaxy Z Fold 6 sees updated regional launch and feature rumors

Summary

• A second Galaxy Z Fold 6 variant may debut with a bigger screen, slimmer build, and lighter weight, per a reliable Samsung leaker.
• Samsung may release a slim Z Fold 6 with no stylus digitizer to compete in China’s competitive foldable market.
• The new Z Fold model is rumored to only be released in Asia, with the potential for alternative foldable releases based on industry insider reports.

First it was entry level, then an Ultra model, then a magical Slim version, then potentially delayed until next year. Now, the shrouded-in-mystery second Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 6 variant may yet see the light of day, according to Ice Universe on X (formerly Twitter). The popular typically Samsung-centric leaker shared hopeful news not just confirming the foldable’s existence, but also that a bigger screen will accompany the purported folding tablet’s slimmer build and lighter weight.

Last month, we learned about Samsung’s potential shelving of the more cost-effective device after failing to get the phone thin enough to match China’s most competitive foldables without sacrificing durability. That follows analyst Ross Young’s insight that a slimmer Z Fold 6, lacking the stylus digitizer, could arrive instead of the oft-rumored Z Fold 6 Ultra. All this whispered speculation only further supports initial rumors from January that a less-expensive tablet-style foldable would reach Samsung’s stable this year.

Cutting the stylus digitizer to reduce thickness is apparently one compromise Samsung’s been forced to make as it works to continue competing in China’s massive, cutthroat market. Instead, the new offering should sport a bigger display overall, coupled with improved durability to combat a problem area in China’s foldable scene. Industry insider Young indicates these larger panels won’t even hit the production line until the later part of this year, making it a real possibility we don’t see the more versatile but stylus-devoid folding slate for another 9 months.

Combining the TheElec reports on Samsung ventures and setbacks with lowkey serial number leads, bold leaks on X (née Twitter), China’s high-end W24 variant of the Fold 5, and component reports from industry insiders helps zero in potential alternative foldable releases in both China and South Korea. China’s W25 branding and possibly some one-off specs almost certainly won’t leave China, and we’ve yet to see indication that either new Z Fold concept will leave Asia at all, though, it’s hard to speculate whether consumers anywhere else will get the chance to try it.

But we are hopeful. Samsung’s never faced this kind of pressure at the top of the foldables market, and its suddenly languishing Z Fold offerings could use new life breathed into them via improvements to existing phones and the introduction of entirely new ones. We may be able to glean more circumstantial evidence after Samsung Unpacked on July 10, but it’s unlikely we’ll know anything for certain, given the likely long wait until a Z Fold 6 Slim becomes reality.