Samsung has been offering double storage as reward for pre-ordering a Galaxy phone for the past three years. It's been a staple of every Galaxy S and Z phone series launched since the S23 in 2023.
There's now bad news because the company may no longer cover such upgrades. Instead, it will cover only half the price difference and leave you to pay the rest.
Samsung says you'll split the bill
Korean business outlet Chosun Biz, which is also the business arm of Chosun Ilbo, recently reported that Samsung is about to walk back one of its most reliable pre-order perks, particularly the free double storage promotion.
Usually, every Galaxy phone comes in different storage tiers, such as 256GB and 512GB. The phone costs more with bigger storage. But under the promotion, you could pay the price for a base storage model and walk away with twice the storage.
So, if you pre-ordered the 256GB model, Samsung would give you the 512GB model in its place. Unfortunately, the company no longer covers future phones fully, but only 50% of the price difference between the 256GB and 512GB models.
The new policy affects the upcoming Galaxy Z Fold 8 series and Z Flip 8 phone. When Chosun Biz asked Samsung to confirm the change, a company official said only “We cannot confirm.” But the Galaxy Unpacked event is set for July 22 in London. So, we're only days away from a confirmation.
If at all it's true, foldable fans are in for a rude awakening. The new lineup has been reported to break a price barrier Samsung foldables have never crossed before.
Galaxy Z Fold pre-orders are looking mighty expensive
Prices for Galaxy Z Fold 8 series have leaked, and they sting. According to Seoul Economic Daily (SEDaily), the Fold 8 Ultra will start near $2,099 for 256GB, which would make it Samsung's first foldable to clear $2,000.
The wider Fold 8 costs about $1,899. The leak also pointed to a steeper climb at higher storage, with one leak pushing the 1TB Ultra to roughly $2,899. There have even been European price leaks as shown below.
Samsung Galaxy Fold 8 (Europe)
| Storage | Price | Approx. USD |
|---|---|---|
| 256GB | €1,999 | ≈ $2,288 |
| 512GB | €2,199 | ≈ $2,137 |
| 1TB | €2,599 | ≈ $2,974 |
Samsung Galaxy Fold 8 Ultra (Europe)
| Storage | Price | Approx. USD |
|---|---|---|
| 256GB | €2,199 | ≈ $2,137 |
| 512GB | €2,399 | ≈ $2,745 |
| 1TB | €2,799 | ≈ $3,203 |
If Samsung applies the half policy to the foldables, the storage upgrade that used to cost you nothing would now cost you around €100 (≈ $114). The brand stops covering the full €200 ($229) price difference on both the Fold 8 and the Ultra phones.
The ongoing memory shortage is to blame for the climb. In case you missed the news, demand for memory chips has exploded, and it's largely because of the AI boom. Data centers and AI companies are buying up enormous quantities of high-end memory to power AI systems. Memory prices jumped to 40–50% in late 2025 and kept climbing through 2026.
