It’s clear that both, companies and customers, are thoroughly bored with the rectangular slab smartphones that are now our constant companions. Fewer people are upgrading across the world and if it weren’t for millions of new users in markets like India, the industry would find itself in a tight spot. So one thing companies are doing is exploring new features and designs, among them the long-elusive foldable phone.

For many years, Samsung was the only company whose name one immediately associated a possible foldable phone with. But now, with the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona, Spain, just three days away, Huawei, Xiaomi, Motorola, (and who knows who else) are racing to bring a foldable phone to the show floor. Not just that, each company is trying to ensure their phone is differently conceptualised from rivals. In fact, many think 2019 will be the year of the foldable phone — though these will be far from mainstream because there will inevitably be problems with the form factor to begin with.

As this article goes to print at the very time Samsung has its Galaxy S10 launch conference, the Korean giant will have already shown off its first foldable phone, possibly named Galaxy X or Galaxy Fold, or Infinity Flex, hinted at in a video from the company. Samsung has previously given the world a peek at a folding phone, taking care not to reveal too much as the device was far from ready with much that could change before release.

Flex or fold

Samsung’s foldable phone will have a screen on top, when folded up, and when opened like a book, will have a larger seven-inch tablet-sized display. The top display will naturally be on the rear, facing down, when the user holds open the inner screen. The screen will be of fairly good resolution, though not the absolute highest. Phone on the outside, tablet on the inside. The body of the device has to be really thin to be flexible and able to fold multiple times.Apparently, one will be able to open three apps at the same time, so it looks like there will be some busy users in the world now. We will know soon enough, but what about other companies and what they have in store?

Not about to be left behind is Huawei, which wants to topple Samsung from its overall Number One spot in the world. The company’s invitation to its MWC 2019 event appears to show a foldable form factor and Huawei has expressed its intentions to make such a phone in 2019, and fascinating images of what is said to be the finished product have appeared in a Chinese newspaper, ET News. Apparently, the screen on the outside will have a bezel-less notched five-inch display and an eight-inch screen on the inside and will be able to replace a PC, Huawei is reported to have said.

Xiaomi President and Co-founder Bin Lin has shared a video on Chinese social media site Weibo that shows him using a device the size of a tablet and the screen, almost bezel-less, seems to fold on both left and right until the two flaps are completely back. This prototype may or may not make it to the final during MWC but the basic concept certainly looks interesting.

Five foldable phones?

Taking the cake is TCL, whom CNET has reported is possibly coming out with a foldable phone that can wrap around the wrist like a watch bracelet. CNET has reported that TCL is actually coming out with five foldable phones, which is amazing considering they have barely come into existence yet. However, some of these may not come out just yet and be released in 2020.

LG, which has been working on a flexible phone for years and has brought out a few prominently curved ones, is rumoured to be opting out of bringing one to the market right now. Speculation has it that both LG and Apple will wait to see how these phones fare and how they are received by users, beyond being a novelty. Indeed, foldable phones are likely have numerous issues to be worked through. How much battery will all those screens take up and what size of battery can be put in without making the device thick and unwieldy. How sturdy will the material and moving parts be to ensure the usual expected longevity for a phone or tablet. How vulnerable to scratches and damage will screens be as they fold back and are placed on surfaces? We will soon find out.

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