In the quietly competitive arena of foldable smartphones, OnePlus has chosen this particular week to make its most compelling argument yet — not through innovation alone, but through the older and more persuasive language of price. By pairing a $300 reduction with up to $800 in trade-in credit, the company is inviting those already committed to the foldable form to reconsider their allegiances before July 7. It is a reminder that in markets shaped by habit and brand loyalty, the most philosophical question a company can ask its customers is simply: what would it take for you to change your min
OnePlus Open foldable drops to $599 with trade-in, undercutting Samsung and Google
A phone that folds into something genuinely useful without sacrificing either portability or screen real estate.
Mark
Why does OnePlus think it can win here when Samsung and Google have been in foldables longer?
Mimi
They're not trying to beat Samsung on brand loyalty or market share overnight. They're targeting the specific person who bought a Galaxy Z Fold and regrets it—someone already convinced foldables are worth the money, just unhappy with the execution. That's a smaller, more winnable audience.
Mark
The $599 price with trade-in sounds almost too good. How does OnePlus make money on that?
Mimi
They're not making much on that particular unit. But they're betting that customer stays in the ecosystem—buys the watch, subscribes to services, buys the next phone. It's a loss leader dressed up as a deal.
Mark
You mentioned the battery is bigger than competitors. Is that actually noticeable in daily use?
Mimi
Yes. A foldable with a 4,400mAh battery that lasts all day is rare. Samsung's and Google's foldables often need a top-up by evening if you're using them heavily. That's not a minor difference when you're carrying a $1,700 device.
Mark
What happens after July 7 when the deal expires?
Mimi
The Open goes back to $1,699, and OnePlus loses its pricing advantage. They'll have captured whoever was on the fence, but they won't sustain this momentum without another promotion or a new product.
Mark
Is this actually a good phone, or just a good deal?
Mimi
It's both. The design genuinely splits the difference between Google's and Samsung's approaches in a way that works. The deal just makes it impossible to ignore.
Der Puls
- OnePlus is slashing its flagship Open foldable to $599 with trade-in — a device that normally costs $1,699 — directly undercutting Samsung's Galaxy Z Fold 5 which starts at $1,800.
- The offer targets a very specific kind of dissatisfied customer: someone already holding a premium Samsung or Google foldable who is open to switching but hasn't had a compelling enough reason — until now.
- The OnePlus Open has genuine hardware credentials to back the pitch, with a larger battery than its rivals, all-day endurance, and a 45-minute full charge that competes even with non-foldable phones.
- OnePlus is sweetening the deal further with a $100 discount on its Watch 2 and six months of Google One storage, layering value without cutting deeper into the phone's own margins.
- The window is deliberately narrow — the promotion closes July 7 — and that urgency is both a sales tactic and an honest reflection of how long aggressive foldable pricing can realistically hold.
In the quietly competitive arena of foldable smartphones, OnePlus has chosen this particular week to make its most compelling argument yet — not through innovation alone, but through the older and more persuasive language of price. By pairing a $300 reduction with up to $800 in trade-in credit, the company is inviting those already committed to the foldable form to reconsider their allegiances before July 7. It is a reminder that in markets shaped by habit and brand loyalty, the most philosophical question a company can ask its customers is simply: what would it take for you to change your mind?
OnePlus is making a calculated push into the foldable phone market with a promotion running through July 7 that brings its flagship Open device down to $599 — combining a $300 price cut with up to $800 in trade-in credit for customers surrendering a Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 4 or 5, a Galaxy S24 Ultra, or a Google Pixel Fold. At full retail the Open costs $1,699, meaning the deal undercuts Samsung's Galaxy Z Fold 5, which starts at $1,800 and climbs higher for larger storage configurations.
The Open arrived last fall into a foldable market defined by distinct compromises. Google's Pixel Fold is compact but heavy; Samsung's Galaxy Z Fold is tall and narrow. Reviewers who tested all three found the OnePlus device occupying genuine middle ground — functional as both a smartphone and a small tablet in a way neither rival quite manages. Its 4,400mAh battery outpaces what Samsung and Google offer in their foldables, runs a full day on a single charge, and refills completely in roughly 45 minutes.
The promotion is aimed squarely at people already inside the foldable category — those with a recent Samsung or Google device who are weighing a switch. For that customer, the trade-in offer removes most of the financial friction from the decision. OnePlus is also bundling $100 off its Watch 2 smartwatch and six months of Google One cloud storage, adding perceived value without compressing the phone's margins further.
The sale closes July 7, after which the Open returns to its standard price. OnePlus is betting that a genuinely competitive product, aggressive economics, and a tight deadline will pull enough switchers from the two dominant players to justify the short-term cost. Whether it shifts the broader competitive balance remains uncertain, but for this particular week, the company is making the case difficult to dismiss.
OnePlus is making a calculated move to grab market share in the foldable phone space. Through July 7, the company is offering its flagship Open device at $599 for customers willing to trade in an older Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 4 or 5, a Galaxy S24 Ultra, or a Google Pixel Fold—a discount that stacks a $300 price cut with up to $800 in trade-in credit. At full retail, the Open costs $1,699. With the trade-in applied, it undercuts Samsung's Galaxy Z Fold 5, which starts at $1,800 and climbs past $2,000 for the largest storage option.
When the OnePlus Open first arrived last fall, it landed in a crowded field of foldable phones, each with distinct compromises. Google's Pixel Fold is compact but heavy. Samsung's Galaxy Z Fold is tall and narrow. The OnePlus device, according to reviewers who have tested all three, occupies genuine middle ground—a phone that folds into something genuinely useful without sacrificing either portability or screen real estate. It functions as both a smartphone and a small tablet, a duality that neither competitor quite manages as elegantly.
The hardware itself carries real advantages. The Open's 4,400mAh battery is larger than what Samsung and Google offer in their foldables, and it's designed to run a full day without a charge. The fast-charging system pushes the device from dead to fully charged in roughly 45 minutes, which is competitive even among non-foldable phones. These aren't trivial features when you're asking someone to spend $1,699 on a device that folds.
The timing of this promotion matters. OnePlus is explicitly targeting people already committed to the foldable category—those who own a recent Samsung or Google foldable and are considering a switch. The trade-in offer removes friction from that decision. A customer unhappy with their Galaxy Z Fold 5 can walk away with an Open for less than they paid for their current device, even before accounting for what they might recoup selling the old phone privately.
Beyond the phone itself, OnePlus is bundling additional incentives. Buyers get $100 off the OnePlus Watch 2 if they want a matching smartwatch, and six months of Google One subscription, which includes 100GB of cloud storage and up to three months of YouTube Premium. These additions sweeten the deal without requiring OnePlus to cut deeper into its margins on the phone itself.
The window for this pricing is narrow. The sale runs only until July 7, after which the Open returns to its standard $1,699 price. OnePlus is creating urgency, which is standard practice, but it also reflects the reality that promotional pricing on high-end devices typically can't sustain indefinitely. The company is betting that the combination of a genuinely competitive product, aggressive pricing, and a limited timeline will pull enough switchers from Samsung and Google to justify the margin compression.
For someone already in the market for a foldable phone and dissatisfied with their current options, the math is straightforward. The OnePlus Open offers a different design philosophy at a price point that makes switching economically rational. Whether that's enough to shift the competitive balance in a market dominated by Samsung remains to be seen, but for the next week, OnePlus is making it hard to ignore.
Bemerkenswerte Zitate
The OnePlus Open occupies the perfect middle ground between Google's small but heavy Pixel Fold and Samsung's tall and thin Galaxy Z Fold.— ZDNET reviewer Kerry Wan
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