Samsung’s foldable fitness test presents golf balls on screens
What you need to know
- Samsung Display showed off a simulator at MWC 2026 that introduced golf balls to foldable phones.
- The company’s latest foldable OLED panels feature a new shock-resistant structure with toughened glass and a titanium backplate.
- The current Galaxy Z Fold 7 is rated for 500,000 folds, or twice the Galaxy Z Fold 6 rating.
Samsung’s foldable phones have come a long way since the original Galaxy Z Fold broke in reviewers’ hands in 2019. More than half a decade later, we’re seeing foldables finally solve the durability problem. The Google Pixel 10 Pro Fold was the first folding phone with an IP68 rating, while the Honor Magic V6 was recently launched as the first folding phone with IP69 certification. Samsung hasn’t been able to withstand as much dust as Google or Honor, but still a lot confidence in the power of its folding displays.
How confident are you? At CES 2026, Samsung Display sent full-sized flying baskets on a backboard made for fully foldable phones. They did not break, and it was certainly impressive. That test would have been good for collapsible items, because basketballs have a larger surface area and are softer than other sports items. So, at MWC 2026, Samsung Display took that experiment to the next level by creating a golf simulator that presents real golf balls to foldable phones.
You can see the demonstration in the video below, and I saw it with my own eyes – Samsung’s foldable displays have survived.
It’s hard to overstate how amazing this test is. For the most part, hard golf balls hit the exact same part of the foldable display, over and over again. There are usually more than 100,000 attendees at MWC, so golf balls have been hit on the same foldable display thousands of times during the show – or more.
And the “Robot Shooting Challenge” test is back, too. I never thought I’d see a backboard made of folding phones, but here we are. You can see how that went in the video below.
Watch it open
Of course, these are simulated environments that don’t reflect real-world use, but it’s still good to see Samsung improving the durability of its folders. The Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 7 launched last year has the ability to survive more than 500,000 hits, which is a huge improvement over the 200,000-fold rating of the Galaxy Z Fold 6. There is also a new shock-resistant structure for Samsung’s latest foldable OLED displays, and that has helped them survive golf balls and basketballs.
Samsung’s foldable OLED displays feature an “Ultra Thin Glass” layer that is now 50% thicker and a flat structure that dissipates shock energy across the display evenly. Behind the display, there is also a titanium backing plate that also helps to protect against shocks. In the real world, this means your Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 7 should be able to survive drops and dings.
Android Central Take
Samsung seems to be leading the foldable industry display durability, but I would like to see it improve the overall durability of its phones. It would be nice to see the next Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 8 ship with IP68 or IP69 certification for better dust protection. Besides, I’ve used the Galaxy Z Fold 7 for months in various locations after launch, and its durability is the real deal.
