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Samsung’s launch this week of the Galaxy Fold sent shockwaves through the internet, with many people outside the tech industry seeing a folding smartphone for the first time. The reaction has been as divided as the phone’s hinged chassis, with one side professing starry-eyed love for the device’s innovative functionality and the other decrying its price and perceived gimmickry.

The Galaxy Fold but it is the first one from a high-profile brand, and as such it is a big deal. Samsung has spent a lot of time and money to be the first mainstream tech name on the folding bandwagon, which suggests the company believes it will be a popular category. Is it right?

Well, yes and no. The Galaxy Fold itself is not likely to sell well – it is very expensive ($1980 according to reports) and unproven. But as the first step in a new direction, it is exactly what the market needs.

Smartphone innovation has stagnated somewhat in the past couple of years, with various near-identical-looking designs all competing for the same money. Manufacturers have tried various tactics to stand out, from the superficial (unusual colours or transparent casings) to the extreme (Lego-style modular accessories, piling ever more cameras on), but consumers have remained unmoved, often sticking with one smartphone brand no matter what else is available.

Foldables, as the category is known, are an innovation that combines the cool factor with functionality. We have seen curved TVs for sale since 2014 – but they failed to revolutionise the market because consumers weren’t convinced they added anything to the viewing experience – or, at least, not enough to justify the higher price tag.

Foldables, on the other hand, do add something extra: the ability to transform into a different device when needed. It isn’t hard to imagine how that fits into our daily lives: when you are just checking your messages, you have a manageable, hand-sized phone that can slip into your pocket, but you can also fold out the big screen to watch movies or play games.

However, one of the stumbling blocks of curved TVs also applies to foldables: concern about fragility and repair. If you break the screen on your $1980 Galaxy Fold, how much is it going to cost you to fix? Potential early adopters may be put off if they feel breakages are likely to be costly and hard to remedy.

Ultimately, though, the Galaxy Fold is more important for the smartphone industry than for the consumer. It is a call to arms for manufacturers to embrace a new form and put their design talents to work finding new ways to improve people’s lives. This kind of novelty is often left to the niche brands to experiment with before the big players like Samsung will risk jumping in. The Galaxy Fold is a bold statement. It may well pay off for Samsung in the long term if it gives the firm a head start in developing and improving the technology, but that depends on how consumers – and other phone manufacturers – react.