With the Galaxy Z Fold 7, Samsung killed off support for the S Pen stylus for the sake of thinness, and now everyone else is suddenly rushing to add the feature to upcoming foldables.
The S Pen is an iconic and beloved feature of Galaxy smartphones, and it only made sense for Samsung to add support in its book-style Galaxy Fold series. Support was first introduced in 2021’s Galaxy Z Fold 3, and carried on for the next few generations until it was removed in the Galaxy Z Fold 7 in 2025.
Samsung, directly calling the move a “trade-off,” offered two main reasons for removing it. First, the thin form factor of the Galaxy Z Fold 7 demanded that the needed hardware for an S Pen was removed. And, beyond that, the removal allowed Samsung to strengthen the ultra-thin glass used for the folding display.
While there’s a good chance the Galaxy Z Fold 8 revives stylus support of some kind, it’s also pretty clear that other foldable makers are rushing to fill in the gap left by Samsung.
The first clear example of this is Motorola, which is offering support for a stylus on its upcoming Razr Fold. The Razr Fold was previewed at CES 2026 earlier this month, and stylus support is one of its biggest features. That’s in large part because, in the US, no other book-style foldable currently offers stylus support. Google has expressed no interest in adding stylus support to the Pixel Fold series.
Beyond that, Oppo is now said to be integrating “AI stylus support” into the upcoming Find N6 foldable according to leaker Digital Chat Station.
Stylus support isn’t new for Oppo’s foldables, as there’s been limited support in every Find N device since the Find N2, but the pen itself has been limited in sales to certain regions, on top of the Oppo Find N5 barely having hit the global stage. The OnePlus Open technically also supported Oppo’s stylus tech, but OnePlus never sold a stylus for it.
Honor, notably, also has a stylus for its foldables, but the company doesn’t advertise it very heavily at all.
While Samsung may have pulled the plug on a stylus for foldables, it’s very clear that in its absence, other companies are stepping up to fill the gap. In 2026, it sounds like we’ll have plenty of choices for book-style foldables with a stylus – will you get one?
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