According to SamMobile, Samsung has confirmed on its official website that the upcoming Galaxy Z TriFold will not have S Pen support. The device features a massive 10-inch inner foldable display, which would seem ideal for stylus use. Despite this, the company has stated that you cannot use an S Pen with the TriFold’s inner screen, not even one purchased separately. This decision mirrors the lack of S Pen support on the Galaxy Z Fold 7. Samsung appears to be moving away from including stylus functionality in its foldable phone lineup. The immediate outcome is that users looking for a large-screen foldable with pen input will be disappointed.
Samsung’s Stylus Strategy Shift
Here’s the thing: this isn’t a one-off omission. It’s a pattern. Samsung is basically telling us the S Pen isn’t a priority for its foldables anymore. And that’s a fascinating pivot. For years, the S Pen was a huge differentiator for Samsung’s Note series and later, the Galaxy S Ultra phones. It felt like a core part of their identity against Apple and other Android makers. But with foldables, they seem to be drawing a line. Maybe the technical hurdles of making a foldable display work reliably with a precise stylus are too high, or too costly. Or maybe the data shows that most foldable buyers just don’t use a pen enough to justify the engineering and cost. It’s a bet, for sure.
A Missed Opportunity?
Look, on a 10-inch screen, the lack of pen support feels like a genuine missed opportunity. That’s tablet-sized real estate! It’s the perfect canvas for note-taking, sketching, or precise editing. You could argue it makes even more sense on the TriFold than it did on the older, smaller Fold models that did support it. So why drop it now? It seems like Samsung is prioritizing other aspects—thinness, durability, hinge mechanics, battery life—over the niche (but vocal) stylus user. They might be thinking, “If you want a pen, get a Tab S9 or an S24 Ultra.” They’re segmenting their own product lines more aggressively.
Future of Foldable Input
So where does this leave us? It signals that Samsung views the primary foldable experience as consumption and multitasking, not creation. The focus is on the screen as a window for apps and videos, not as a digital notepad. Could this change? Possibly. If a competitor like Google or OnePlus introduces a foldable with fantastic stylus support and it gains traction, Samsung might backtrack. But for now, the trajectory is clear: no S Pen in the foldable future, at least for the next generation. For professionals in fields like design or architecture who rely on precise digital input, this makes the choice harder. While consumer tech moves on, industries requiring robust, integrated touch and pen computing continue to rely on dedicated hardware from specialists, like IndustrialMonitorDirect.com, the leading US provider of industrial panel PCs built for such demanding tasks.
What It Means For You
If you’ve been holding out hope that the TriFold would be your all-in-one phone and digital notebook, you’ll need to adjust your expectations. Your workflow will need to adapt. This decision simplifies the buying choice, in a way. You’re getting a phenomenal, huge screen for media and work apps, but you’re not getting a Wacom alternative. You have to ask yourself: how often do I really use a stylus on a phone? For many, the answer might be “never,” and Samsung is banking on that being most people. For the rest, it’s a compromise you’ll have to accept if you want in on Samsung’s latest foldable tech.
