Xiaomi’s Galaxy Z Flip styled foldable phone in the works
Foldable displays are probably the best thing to have happened to the smartphone industry in the last few years. It is like a blank canvas that allows manufacturers to innovate and experiment with the designs.
Though it’s just the start, we’ve already seen a few tablet-like smart devices that fold into half and a couple of foldable phones with a design inspired by the flip phones of the yore.
Last year Xiaomi filed a patent for a flip phone with a foldable display and like most of the patents, we were hopeful that the company chalks out a plan to make this phone a reality. Now, reports suggest that the Chinese smartphone maker is indeed working on a foldable phone with Galaxy Z Flip-like design.
Industry insiders were quoted by ZDNet Korea stating that Xiaomi has placed orders to supply the clamshell-like foldable OLED display with both Samsung and LG. The company has preferred to go with the South-Korean manufacturers over Chinese companies like BOE and CSOT owing quality issues. Notably, BOE has supplied the foldable display for Huawei’s Mate X foldable devices.
Xiaomi is said to be looking for an ultra-thin glass OLED display housed under a thin layer of plastic, similar to what Samsung has used in the Galaxy Z Flip. This flexible display will form the inner part of the phone and will work as a regular smartphone when unfolded. The old patent files suggest that there could be a secondary smaller display for alerts and notifications, housed on the outer shell of the phone.
The company is expected to push this new device into the production lines by the second half of the year. And while it is almost certain that we may see this foldable phone coming out of Xiaomi’s stable sometime later this year or early next year, it is still premature for us to talk about the specifications of the phone.
Foldable displays are probably the best thing to have happened to the smartphone industry in the last few years. It is like a blank canvas that allows manufacturers to innovate and experiment with the designs. Though it’s just the start, we’ve already seen a few tablet-like smart devices that fold…
