Galaxy Z Fold 3, Z Flip 2 leak hints at launch schedule

The jury is still out whether the Galaxy S21 Ultra will finally break the cycle of disappointing Galaxy S sales but that isn't stopping people's attention from shifting towards Samsung's next big thing. Of course, rumors about its 2021 foldables have been circulating over the Internet for months now but there is still some disagreement over some of the details. This latest info dump doesn't exactly put those debates to rest but adds just a little more for us to chew on.

One of the things that are still in question is the actual number of foldable phones that Samsung will launch this year. Some say there will only be three, with a single "Lite" foldable joining the Z Fold and Z Flip. Others claim there will be four, at least two variants of each kind of foldable phone.

SamMobile unfortunately doesn't have a definite answer yet but the fact that it only got details for two foldable phones puts the "Lite" theory into doubt again. According to its sources, the SM-F926, a.k.a. Galaxy Z Fold 3, will have 256GB of storage and come with Android 11 and One UI 3.5. On the other hand, the SM-F711, a.k.a. Galaxy Z Flip 2, will be available in 128GB and 256GB storage options, also running One UI 3.5 and Android 11.

The version of One UI is important as it suggests that the launch window for these two phones won't be until the second half of the year. One UI 3.1 is still rolling out and it will take some time for Samsung to polish a One UI 3.5. Whether there will be any updates in between those two releases is unknown at this point.

This schedule also casts doubt on the Galaxy Note 21 once again. The stylus-toting phablet used to herald a new version of Samsung's custom user experience, a role that might have been reassigned to these two foldables instead.