Samsung W2017 is a high-end flip phone — but for China only

Following months of speculation, Samsung has finally launched a premium flip phone featuring a 4.2in full HD Super AMOLED screen. Not all Samsung fans across the globe will have access to it as it is meant only for China.

The flip phone dubbed Samsung W2017 draws power from a Snapdragon 820 chip featuring a quad-core processor. Like other high-end mobile devices, Samsung's new handset packs 4GB RAM. It offers 64GB internal storage which can be further expanded with the help of microSD card.

The phone has a 12 megapixel rear camera, which can capture 4K video. There is a five megapixel front-facing camera too for selfie lovers.

It boasts 4G LTE connectivity and packs a 2,300mAh battery. Crafted into a metal build, the phone weighs 208gm. Other notable features are wireless charging, fingerprint sensor and support for Samsung's mobile payment system, Samsung Pay.

Samsung has also added the Always On Display (AOD) functionality, first introduced in the Galaxy S7 and S7 Edge handsets, to its new flip phone. When activated, the AOD constantly shows information such as time and date, missed calls, message alerts and much more, but using very little power — less than one percent per hour. When the battery level of the phone goes down, the AOD turns off automatically.

Sammobile says the phone would be released in China soon with a retail tag of more than 20,000 yuan ($2,952.8/£2,378).

The Samsung W2017 is the successor to W2016 that was launched last year, and again a China-bound phone. Details about this phone began emerging months ago with codename Veyron. The phone even made unofficial appearances via leaked photos.