(Yicai Global) Oct. 24 -- Sales of foldable mobile phones on the Chinese mainland will surpass two million units this year, online news outlet The Paper reported, citing an analyst at market research institute Canalys.

The vast majority of customers still have a 'wait-and-see' attitude towards foldable mobile phones, said Liu Yixuan. This is due to their high prices, thickness and weight, uneven screens, software adaptability and other issues.

If the price of foldable handsets can be lowered to those of regular smartphones, sales will improve greatly, Liu said. But phone makers are still positioning foldable phones as high-end models and production costs are high, so their pricing is not likely to come down much in the short term, she added.

Although its market share remains small, foldable handsets are one of the fastest growing segments in a sluggish smartphone market. Mobile phone sales on the Chinese mainland slumped 10 percent in the second quarter from the same period last year to 67.4 million units.

Many handset makers will continue to innovate in the area of foldable phones in order to enrich their product portfolios and showcase new designs, Liu said.

Chinese telecoms giant Huawei Technologies debuted the world’s very first folding cell phone, the Huawei Mate X, in February 2019. And South Korean rival Samsung also launched its first folding handset, the Galaxy Fold, at the same time. Oppo Mobile Telecommunications, Vivo Communication Technology, Xiaomi Corp. and other manufacturers have followed suit.

US tech giant Apple will probably launch an iPad equipped with a foldable screen by 2024, market analysis firm CCS Insight said in its yearly prediction report.

Editor: Kim Taylor