"Samsung was making a foldable smartphone just because it could, not because it was solving any particular problem. "
True.
"It is for this reason [The screen is prone to dings, since it's plastic] that Samsung opted for a design that folds inwards, not outwards."
Is this a joke? You think that protecting the screen is why it doesn't fold outwards, and not because of the simple physics involved in how the fold would affect the screen pulling outwards?
"The company would not be proceeding with the launch if it had concerns about the durability of the display."
That's even scarier. That they did not anticipate the apparent durability problems (that extend past just the removing of the plastic film) with the display.
"And if companies are going to ship products with known weaknesses, they shouldn't just hope we read a user manual – and don't accidentally peel off some damn plastic."
I haven't read any of the quoted article, other than the quoted parts, but while I usually fall on the side of RTFM being an acceptable response to things, Samsung is a big enough company and has been around long enough to know that no, even if they should be reading the manuals, few users actually DO read the manual. They should be smart enough to know this and anticipate this. They are not a new tech company, an.
"However, that price also includes a set of Galaxy Buds"
Easily lost wireless headphones is a plus?
"a custom case..."
Looking up the case in reviews, and it doesn't appear to be anything too substantial. True, it's nice they add it in, but it doesn't seem to be a positive or a negative, in actual practice.
"Whatever you want to say, positive or negative, the Samsung Galaxy Fold is a game changer... The Fold may well be flawed, but it is undoubtedly the future of smartphones and it is here now, thanks to Samsung."
It really isn't. It has zero positive reason to even exist. It's the next Google Glass, 3D TV or Flexplay DVD. There is no future in foldable screens, since even the reviews that don't bring up the easily damaged screen say it's too big and fat to be a phone and it's too small to be a decent tablet.