Though most phones in 2020 will move away from the notch and utilize the punch-hole design, I’m more excited to see how the foldable phones will evolve. The Galaxy Fold or Huawei Mate X are the first breed of foldable phones – turning a phone into a tablet-like device. Whereas Motorola Razr recently launched with a clamshell foldable design which turns the phone into a more compact, pocketable device.
Xiaomi is also known to be working on foldables, thanks to the dual-folding phone which was shown off earlier this year. Its newest patent, however, hints that the Chinese giant could be developing a foldable very similar to the Motorola Razr. Patent images (as seen below) for Xiaomi’s clamshell foldable have surfaced online via CNIPA (China National Intellectual Property Administration)
As you can see in the image above, Xiaomi’s patent describes a device that will open up into a taller phone (with a foldable display on the inside) from a small yet bulky-looking square shape in its closed state. The outer shell houses a rectangular display that will show you notifications, music controls, and more. There’s a dual-camera module on the rear here as well.
Turning our attention to the inside, there’s a foldable display that stretches to the edges all-around – except for the top bezel. Xiaomi will be offering a tiny bezel at the top – like the Galaxy S9 to bake the dual selfie camera, earpiece, sensors, and more. Since there’s no substantial chin or top bezel, like we find on the Motorola Razr 2019, it’s possible that Xiaomi’s clamshell phone concept will be quite bulky.
As you all must know by now, the patent filing simply describes an idea and there’s the possibility that we may never see it come to life. However, I’m confident that Xiaomi is going to launch a foldable phone in 2020, possibly under the Mi Mix branding. What are your thoughts on foldable phones, in general? Would you buy it right now if you could? Share your opinions with us in the comments below.
