Foldable Smartphones Bring Much Needed Excitement to Stagnant Market
After years of false starts and dual-screen gimmicks, true foldable displays finally arrive in 2019 to revitalize a boring smartphone industry. Early devices like the Royole FlexPai show promise but highlight the challenges of this new form factor.
Foldable smartphones represent the latest attempt to shake up a stagnant mobile market, as major manufacturers pour R&D dollars into displays that actually bend. While the concept of folding phones evokes the classic flip phone era, previous attempts like the ZTE Axon M fail to deliver a true folding experience due to clunky dual-screen hinges. Facing declining sales, tech companies now take bold leaps to make smartphones fun again, positioning foldables as the mobile equivalent of laptop convertibles.
The first true foldable device comes from an unexpected player named Royole with its FlexPai handset. Early glimpses of the device reveal a rough around the edges product, proving that being first to market does not guarantee the best execution. Despite updated versions showing slight improvements, the FlexPai highlights the inherent difficulties of creating a seamless screen that folds without compromising the user experience.
This new category of devices aims to transform a standard one-handed smartphone into a larger tablet by utilizing a single flexible display. Unlike the failed dual-screen experiments of the past, true foldables require the screen itself to do the bending to eliminate awkward gaps. As 2019 progresses, all eyes remain on industry heavyweights like Samsung and LG to see if they can perfect this technology and finally deliver on the long-promised foldable dream.