On June 26, vivo unveiled its new book-type foldable, the vivo X Fold 6, and will begin sales in China on July 1 starting at RMB 7,999. The vivo X Fold 6 applies a Samsung Display OLED (M14 emitting material) as its 8.02-inch internal main panel, while adopting a BOE Q11 panel for its 6.51-inch cover. It continues the combination of using Samsung Display for the main panel and BOE for the cover. The AP is a Dimensity 9500 Super Edition co-customized with MediaTek, and the battery is a 7,000mAh-class unit applying 5th-generation silicon anode and 3rd-generation semi-solid-state methods.
vivo X Fold 6 launch presentation (Source: vivo)
With this new product, vivo put forward its foldable-dedicated operating system, OriginOS 6 Fold, emphasizing functionality that goes a step beyond simply unfolding the screen — enabling simultaneous use of multiple apps and AI features when the screen is unfolded. A newly added parallel mode allows up to 4 apps to be displayed side by side on the screen for simultaneous operation. This appears to reflect how book-type foldables are evolving into devices suited for AI tasks, driven by larger screen sizes, multi-window operation, and higher brightness.
According to UBI Research’s analysis, while smartphone shipments using OLED panels are projected to decrease from a total of 885 million units in 2025 to 785 million units in 2026 due to rising memory prices, global foldable phones are forecast to see shipments grow by approximately 26% in 2026, driven by Apple’s foldable phone shipments and expanded OEM participation. Total foldable phone shipments are projected to grow from 20.6 million units in 2025 to 26 million units in 2026.
The new variable in the 2026 foldable phone market is the emitting material generation. Samsung Display’s latest M16 is expected to be applied across 2026 flagship products broadly, starting with the Google Pixel 11, followed by the iPhone 18 Pro, Apple’s first foldable phone, and the Galaxy S27, and it is also known that M16 will be used in the internal panel of Apple’s foldable phone. On the other hand, Samsung Electronics’ own foldable, the Galaxy Z Fold 8 series, is expected to maintain M13 as is. Even with the same Samsung Display panel, the applied emitting material generation differs depending on the supply target.
In terms of form factor, horizontally wide foldables have emerged as a new area of competition. Huawei’s Pura X Max launched first in April, to be followed by Samsung Electronics’ Galaxy Z Fold 8 Wide in July and Apple’s first foldable phone in September. All three products have similar screen sizes, with an internal display of 7.6–7.7 inches and a cover of 5.4–5.5 inches, meaning China has entered the wide foldable category roughly half a year ahead of the market. At the same time, the focus of crease-reduction technology is shifting from the hinge to the panel structure. Apple is reported to be targeting a crease depth of less than 0.15mm through dual-layer ultra-thin glass and precision bonding processes.
According to UBI Research’s tally, in the 2025 OLED panel market, Samsung Display held the No. 1 position by shipment volume with a 42% share, while the combined share of Chinese panel makers expanded to around 50% in 2025. Korean companies maintain an advantage on a revenue basis due to their high proportion of premium products such as the iPhone and Galaxy. While foldable panel shipments are expected to increase in 2026 driven by Apple’s foldable phone volume, Samsung Display — set to exclusively supply the panel for Apple’s first foldable phone for 3 years — is expected to benefit the most.
UBI Research diagnoses the 2026 foldable phone market as an inflection point where quantitative growth and qualitative transformation are arriving together. The hardware competition around thickness, weight, and crease marks that has driven the market until now has already entered a leveling-off stage, and consumers are now beginning to ask the more fundamental question of “why is a foldable necessary at all?” vivo’s large-screen-based AI productivity push, the wide form factor that Apple and Huawei have successively entered, and the underlying generational shift in panel structure and emitting materials can all be seen as each company’s answer to this question. Going forward, the competition among foldable phones is likely to be decided not by how thin they can fold, but by what new experience they can offer users when unfolded.
Changho Noh, Senior Analyst at UBI Research (chnoh@ubiresearch.com)
▶2026 Analysis Report on China’s OLED Supply Chain Management
▶2026 Small OLED Display Annual Report
※ This article is produced by UBIResearchNet.
Unauthorized reproduction or citation without source attribution is prohibited.
When quoting, please clearly indicate the source (UBIResearchNet) and provide a link.