Samsung's preorder record books needed updating this week, and the phone that did it folds in half. Per figures reported by 9to5Google via Korea's Yonhap News Agency, the Galaxy Z Fold 8, Z Fold 8 Ultra and Z Flip 8 have piled up 1.44 million preorders between them — beating a record that had stood untouched since 2019.
The Note 10 finally gives up its crown
The old benchmark belonged to the Galaxy Note 10: 1.38 million preorders in its home-market window, set seven years ago. Nothing since had managed to beat it. This year's Galaxy S26 series came closest at 1.35 million, and still fell short. Now a foldable lineup has cleared the bar — a real milestone for a category that spent years as an expensive curiosity.
Here's the kicker: the window isn't even shut yet. Preorders run through August 7, so the tally is still climbing. After that, the launch deals that helped drive all this demand vanish until Samsung's next sales event.
Last generation barely crossed a million
Compare the generations and the jump looks even wilder. The Z Fold 7 and Z Flip 7 scraped past one million combined preorders. Earlier reports had the Fold 8 selling about three times better than its predecessor, and this new data turns that from rumor into record.
The reason, by 9to5Google's read, is the redesign. The Fold 8's new shape is easier to live with day to day, and that's pulled in mainstream buyers who'd previously looked at foldables, shrugged, and bought a regular flagship instead.
Success is straining the machine
All that demand has a cost. Samsung's website has reportedly buckled under the traffic at points, and shipments are being delayed as orders keep stacking up. You can still order a Fold 8 or Fold 8 Ultra today — just don't expect it to arrive quickly.
It's a strange new problem for Samsung's foldable line, which used to need heavy discounting to move at all. The deals are still generous this cycle. The difference is that supply, not demand, has become the bottleneck.
Why this matters
For years, foldables were the bet Samsung kept making while most buyers politely declined. A preorder record that tops both the Note and the S series says the market has moved. The folding phone isn't an early-adopter toy anymore — it's a flagship people actually line up for.
And the timing is pointed. Rivals have foldables of their own coming, and Google's Pixel event is days away. Samsung now walks into the fall with proof that the form factor can carry flagship-level volume, and you can bet its marketing will say so loudly.
What's next
Preorders close August 7, which is when the final record number gets set. Then comes the harder test: shipping all of it. Delivery dates have already slipped, and how quickly Samsung works through the backlog will decide whether launch buzz curdles into launch complaints.
The short version: after seven years, the Note 10's record is gone — taken by a phone that would've sounded like science fiction the day that record was set.
Image: Zana Latif, via Pexels
