Smartphone or tablet? Hard to know what lies behind this brick that unfolds and reveals a large screen. One thing is sure: Samsung has filed the patent this week in South Korea and the United States.
The Galaxy Fold’s screen problems did not dampen the brand’s engineers, as on May 7, they filed a patent for a brand-new device.
At first sight, the documents filed with the USPTO (the equivalent of the INPI in the United States) and put online by LetsGoDigital show us a kind of radio-alarm clock, similar to a vulgar brick. On one side, the hour. On the other, viewing emails, SMS and other notifications.
But this brick unfolds to turn into a tablet with a flexible and foldable screen that displays icons as on a phone or tablet lambda. We do not know if the device will also serve as a phone but it is a new format, and we can imagine that once unfolded, the screen will be about 8 inches, the size of an iPad mini.
Foldable screens will bring new connected objects
This would carry the device in a pocket, and unfold it when needed, in transport or meeting. On the different drawings, there is a button to turn the device on and off, as well as a USB connection. Which gives it the appearance of connected speakers.
Maybe this futuristic object will remain in the boxes of Samsung but foldable and flexible screens, if they do not deteriorate, open new perspectives. Other devices are expected to benefit, such as watches with dials around the wrist – like the Nubia – and tablets that could be stored in its poached.