Samsung has introduced its new Galaxy Z Fold 8 lineup, which is now available to consumers in South Africa. However, due to the premium technology of the foldable screen and rising memory costs for artificial intelligence, the devices come with a rather high price tag.
Device Prices and Configurations
The base model of the Galaxy Z Fold 8 will be sold starting from R32,000. The larger version, Galaxy Z Fold 8 Ultra, starts at approximately R35,400. Furthermore, higher memory configurations increase the price: the standard Fold 8 with 512GB costs R40,999, while the Fold 8 Ultra with the same capacity reaches R50,999.
Comparison with Competitors
For comparison, the flagship iPhone 17 Pro from Apple starts at R27,999, and the iPhone 17 Pro Max starts at R30,699. The high price of Samsung devices is attributed to the inclusion of foldable display technology, which distinguishes them from traditional smartphones.
Technical Specifications of the Models
The main difference between the two Samsung models lies in their dimensions and weight. The Fold 8 model measures 6 inches and weighs only 201 grams, making it noticeably more compact compared to the 8-inch Fold 8 Ultra, which weighs 215 grams.
Performance and Availability
Despite the external differences, both phones offer almost identical performance and display quality. Both models start with 256GB of storage and 12GB of RAM, ensuring very fast and responsive operation in both daily tasks and under intensive loads. Pre-orders will begin on August 12th, with general availability in South Africa starting on August 13th.
Impact of AI on Component Costs
In the future, device prices may increase even further. The global shortage of RAM, unified memory, and storage drives, spurred by the insatiable demand for AI workflows, continues to raise component costs. As modern users increasingly utilize memory-intensive AI tools such as ChatGPT, Google Gemini, Microsoft Copilot, Claude, and Perplexity, high memory specifications become necessary and expensive.