Samsung has promised to roll out more affordable foldable phones this year The first step in this process is a phone that you are all familiar with

The handset maker this week slashed the price of the Galaxy Z Flip 5G by $250, bringing the price of Samsung's flip phone down to $1,199 This is the lowest price Samsung has set for a folding handset

More importantly, this is also the same price Samsung is charging for the Galaxy S21 Ultra, the centerpiece device in its new Galaxy S21 lineup $1,200 handsets should not be confused with budget handsets, but the price cut for the Galaxy Z Flip 5G, clearly a step by Samsung to make its folding handsets more affordable

To that end, as part of a current promotion, you can save up to $1,000 on the Galaxy Z Flip 5G if you trade in your current phone Normally, Samsung offers a $450 trade-in with rebate

The Galaxy Z Flip debuted a year ago and it was the first Samsung foldable to arrive fully refined The phone took the flip phone design of yesteryear and added a foldable 67-inch screen that was enhanced by adding a layer of ultra-thin glass This made the Z Flip more durable than previous Flip models

The Z Flip also has a strong hinge that allows the phone to be opened in a variety of positions, a feature called flex mode

When the Z Flip is opened at a 90-degree angle, certain apps can split the screen to handle different functions This feature was so successful that Samsung adopted flex mode for the Galaxy Z Fold 2

When announcing the new $1,199 price of the Galaxy Z Flip 5G, Samsung also touted some of the special features on the foldable flip phone These include a multitasking feature that allows two apps to run simultaneously on the Z Flip's main screen, and the ability to use the 11-inch external display as a viewfinder for selfies

Additionally, one-handed mode can be activated by double-tapping the Z Flip's home button

The Galaxy Z Flip 5G is certainly a more attractive option than it was when it was $1,449 However, there are a few things to consider before hitting the "buy" button

For starters, such price cuts generally signal that a company is willing to get rid of inventory in advance of a new product release And we have heard rumors that Samsung has a sequel to the Galaxy Z Flip There is no immediate timeframe on when that phone will come out, but rumors have also picked up about a new version of Samsung's foldable, the Galaxy Z Fold 3, which may arrive as early as May, if not later this year

Samsung has made no secret of its desire to make more foldables Samsung Electronics president TM Roh said at the end of 2020 that the company is "gaining momentum" from its folderable business and vowed to keep it going in the new year

"We will expand our fodable portfolio to make this groundbreaking category more accessible to everyone," Roh said at the time

It remains to be seen if the cheaper Galaxy Z Flip will check the box of more affordable foldables or if Samsung has even lower-priced devices in the pipeline Other reports suggest that Samsung's efforts include rollable and sliding phones in addition to foldables, and it is likely that the handset maker has not yet begun such an effort