The Galaxy Z Fold 3 is the first foldable phone to offer S Pen support, but as you may already know, it doesn't work with just any S Pen. Samsung explained why the Galaxy Z Fold 3 is only compatible with the S Pen Fold Edition and the S Pen Pro, but what you might not know is that using any other type of S Pen with the new Galaxy Z Fold 3 could damage its foldable display.
It's not an exaggeration or something related to software. Rather, the tip design of a regular S Pen can cause permanent physical damage to the Galaxy Z Fold 3's foldable screen, and that's with the new protective film claiming 80% more durability.
The S Pen Fold Edition and Pro have special retractable tips
To work around this inherent durability problem of the foldable display, Samsung developed the “Pro Tips” for the S Pen Fold Edition and S Pen Pro. These new tips are softer than the regular ones, but more importantly, they have a retractable mechanism that prevents damage to the foldable screen when pressure is applied.
No other S Pen models have these characteristics, and without them, they would damage the foldable screen. In other words, even if third parties could tweak the software and make the Galaxy Z Fold 3 work with any S Pens — something that's likely impossible — it would be a dangerous mix.
All this said, if you will buy a Galaxy Z Fold 3 and you have a regular S Pen laying around, don't even try using it with the foldable display unless you want to risk permanent hardware damage. Alternatively, you can buy the S Pen Fold Edition (without a case) from Samsung for $49.99 and/or the S Pen Pro for $99.99. Or you can pre-order the Galaxy Z Fold 3 and get the Note Pack with an S Pen case included, though availability might differ by region.
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