Opinion | Galaxy Fold, Samsung’s $2,000 bid to be the king of cool

The smartphone with a foldable screen, which Samsung will start shipping at the end of April, is far more than an expensive gimmick. With the release of the $1,980 Galaxy Fold, Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd challenges Apple’s claim to premium pricing and unleashes, in what looked like a mature market, the same kind of race that Apple Inc. started with the first iPhone.

The price point, of course, is pure cheek. When Apple launched the iPhone in January, 2007, it did so at $399 with a two-year contract, more than most mobile phones cost that year, but Nokia’s 2007 flagship handset, the N95, sold for a hefty $700 unlocked—and it didn’t even have a full keyboard.