C. Scott Brown / Android Authority
TL;DR
- Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 7 screen replacements will reportedly cost as much as $885 for the inner panel.
- While the Flip 7’s inner screen is much more affordable, even that will run nearly $400.
- Despite not even folding, the Fold 7’s exterior screen could cost a staggering $610 to repace.
Smartphones today are at their most expensive, and while you can find plenty of very affordable options out there when it comes to traditional handsets, it’s the foldables space that really drives prices into the stratosphere. When you’re dropping nearly $2K on a new phone (if not even more) you need to think very carefully about how you’re going to make that investment last, and while choosing a good case can go a long way there, it’s probably worth taking a moment to decide how you want to approach repairs, should that awful day eventually come.
Broadly speaking, you’ve got two main options for dealing with phone damage. A regular warranty isn’t going to protect you from accidents, so many users choose to cover their phone with some kind of phone insurance that explicitly pays for repairs even due to accidental damage. That’s sold both as plans from third parties, as well as offered from some manufacturers as an add-on.
If you don’t want to go the insurance route, you’re deciding that if and when an accident happens, you’ll pony up the cash to pay for those repairs out of pocket.
There’s no wrong choice, and a lot of factors are going to weigh on your ultimate decision. Obviously, price is a major one there, both in terms of insurance plans and replacement parts, and we can only make an informed decision when we know what to expect. Samsung’s new Galaxy Z Fold 7 and Flip 7 are probably the two hottest new foldables on the market, and today we finally get a little insight into just what it’s going to cost to repair these models — and specifically, their screens.
C. Scott Brown / Android Authority
The folks over at SamMobile have gotten ahold of a pricing list for replacement components, and — well, we don’t know what your expectations were, but if they were high, you were in the right ballpark.
Let’s start with the big guy. Based on information from a European supplier, the Fold 7’s internal screen costs €761 (~$885). That’s over twice what the Flip 7’s €342 (~$398) folding screen costs to replace. And keep in mind — these are hardware costs only, and don’t factor in the labor of actually installing them.
Surely the non-folding screens here must be priced a bit more reasonably, right? Hahaha, no. Maybe the Flip 7’s €207 (~$240) FlexWindow won’t break the bank, but the Fold 7’s exterior panel lists for €525 (~$610), or as much as a good phone itself.
Samsung’s pre-order pages for the Fold 7 and Flip 7 confirm that the former is a Care Plus Tier 4 device, and the latter Tier 3. That means that if you want Samsung’s own coverage, it will run you $13 a month (or $259 for two years) for the Fold 7, and $10 a month (or $169 for two years) for the Flip 7. And then on top of that, you’re paying $29 per replacement. There’s also a higher Care Plus level that doesn’t have a per-incident fee and also covers loss or theft, but costs even more.
Either way, it’s a gamble. The important thing is that the choice is yours. If you do decide to go with Care Plus, you’re able to select it at the time you purchase your phone from Samsung, or sign up within 60 days after the fact.
