Samsung runs ad for new foldable flip phone during US Oscars telecast

The company’s highly anticipated Motorola Razr rival has leaked online, but now the company is running ads for it before it’s even announced.

Samsung has confirmed what we already knew with an ad during the Oscars telecast revealing its rival to the Motorola Razr.

The new device, a clamshell foldable smartphone that’s expected to be called the Galaxy Z Flip, is due to be unveiled at the company’s Unpacked event on Wednesday morning (AEDT).

The phone was revealed in a short ad during the American telecast of the Oscars, but has since been posted on YouTube.

A screenshot of an ad for the Galaxy Flip Z expected to be officially revealed at Samsung's Unpacked event on Wednesday.

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It will be Samsung’s second folding smartphone after it was the first to hit the mainstream market last year with the Galaxy Fold.

That phone, while groundbreaking, wasn’t without its issues that left Samsung with considerable embarrassment after review devices quickly broke.

The phone was redesigned before eventually going on sale a few months later, selling out within hours of hitting the market in Australia despite costing $2999.

Devices looking very much like the original Galaxy Fold (inside and out) showed up on the internet earlier this month branded as the new phone from Escobar Inc, a company run by narcoterrorist Pablo Escobar’s brother Roberto.

Despite never shipping the Escobar Fold 1, the company is taking orders for the Escobar Fold 2.

Phones looking suspiciously like the Galaxy Fold recently showed up online being sold by a company run by Pablo Escobar’s brother. Picture: David Becker/Getty Images/AFP

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While there are several big questions surrounding the Escobar branded phones, devices from more reputable smartphone makers are on the way.

Folding phones look set to dominate the innovation part of the smartphone market over the next several years, reminiscent of flip and sliding style phones surging to popularity in the early 2000s.

Probably the most iconic flip phone of that era, the Motorola Razr, is being revived as a foldable smartphone which will go on sale for $2699 at the end of the month.

The two phones primarily differ in the way they unfold.

The Galaxy Fold opens horizontally, transforming from a compact smartphone into a miniature tablet better for reading and consuming content on.

Motorola’s Razr unfolds vertically, giving you a 6.2-inch display when unfolded.

When closed the phone has a small display for notifications and other quick actions but is designed to be used primarily in its open state.

While the Razr has stellar brand recognition, it won’t be without competition.

The Galaxy Flip Z, if that’s what it is indeed called, will have a similar form factor and function.

It’s also believed Samsung will have another foldable device debuting at Unpacked but that will have to wait until Wednesday morning to confirm.

The new Motorola Razr closes all the way, but Samsung’s clamshell doesn’t appear to.

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Samsung fixed the original Galaxy Fold before releasing it to market, but there are still a few problems the company couldn’t fix.

Firstly, the Galaxy Fold doesn’t fold all the way closed and there is still a gap between the screens when folded over.

The Motorola Razr folds completely shut.

The Galaxy Fold also had a quite visible but easy to look past crease in the centre of its screen.

Neither of these issues appear to have been addressed with the Z Flip however, which looks set to have a moneyclip style fold over than the gapless closure on Motorola’s phone.

The screen crease looks set to stick around as well if a disclaimer in the teaser ad is anything to go by.

“You may notice a crease at the centre of the main screen, which is a natural characteristic of the screen,” Samsung warned in the fine print.

Foldable phones use plastic OLED displays rather than the rigid glass one you’re used to.

While the displays aren’t as nice to look at or touch, some compromise is necessary to facilitate the new form factor.

Motorola appears to have managed to largely avoid the crease on its phone but does warn about bumps and ripples on the display, which are visible but not very noticeable.

Samsung is expected to officially unveil the new flip phone as well as its next flagship Galaxy S device on Wednesday morning (AEDT).

Do you like the look of Samsung’s new foldable phone? Let us know in the comments below