Rumours have been rife that along with the S10 series, the Samsung Galaxy X will also be making an appearance. The most intriguing, alleged aspect of the Galaxy X being the foldable form factor. A patent by Samsung titled, ‘Bendable user terminal device and displaying thereof’ aka foldable phone, was published on the 5th of July. It was filed by Samsung with the USPTO and WIPO on 1st March 2018.
The design takes cues from the flip phone aka clamshell design to implement a foldable display using a leaf spring and bend sensor instead of a hinge. While in open mode, the complete display is available for use. But as soon as the device is folded a little, the bottom part of the display shuts off with about 40% of the total display available for use up top. The bend sensor is responsible for detecting the bend angle, speed, state and even time.
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The back of the device can ascertain the extent to which the user has held the back of the device. The spring leaf mechanism coupled with the bend sensor keeps the bending angle in check. Even if the bottom part of the display is inactive, the background processes are not hindered. Touching the back of the device would fire up the upper part of the display, similar to an always-on display. IF further pressure is exerted on the back of the phone, the whole display powers up.
Conceptually, the design gets everything right. Practically, a fold-able smartphone might be a problem since it’s not just the display that folds but rather the complete body. But Samsung seems to have been working on solving that problem too. Their foldable batteries were recently showcased. The Samsung Galaxy X is expected to be a limited edition smartphone which will be unveiled at MWC 2019, not to mention that it will cost a bomb.
