Samsung Galaxy Fold launch may be delayed in China

It’s not clear if Samsung’s first attempt at a foldable display device is ready for primetime, but the word out of China suggests there may be some concern.

The upcoming launch of the Galaxy Fold has reportedly been postponed, as have events connected to it in Hong Kong and Shanghai that were set for Tuesday and Wednesday. It’s worth noting that Samsung hasn’t confirmed any of this directly,

Word of the launch delay comes via “someone claiming to be familiar with the matter” speaking to SamMobile. The source claims that the delay stems from an issue with the launch event’s venue, though the specifics aren’t clear.

That report also notes that “two other local activities” are also no longer happening. Those are likely the Shanghai and Hong Kong events, which Engadget Chinese editor-in-chief Richard Lai confirmed were postponed in a Sunday morning tweet.

There’s been some speculation that the Galaxy Fold’s pre-launch technical woes are partially or wholly responsible for the apparent change in plans. While Mashable’s own tech team found that the device makes a great first impression, early reports of how it holds up under extended use have been less than glowing ahead of the U.S. launch, set for April 26, 2019.

A number of tech media journalists who received the device early have reported — and widely documented — issues with the folding display and the hardware as a whole. In a statement, Samsung pledged to investigate the issues and also noted that a handful of faulty device reports stem from user error.

The company also confirmed that the U.S. launch plans haven’t changed.

None of this clears up what’s happening in China or why, exactly, the launch event and a couple of connected events are apparently postponed. Mashable has reached out to Samsung for further comment and we’ll update this story once we hear back.

[h/t The Verge]