At this point, Samsung apparently just wants to fold all the things.
In all seriousness, the South Korea-based tech giant sees enough promise in bringing the foldable form factor to multiple mobile devices that it’s begun taking more than one serious stab in this direction. The Galaxy F, of course, being the much-hyped first foldable phone that’s on the way from the company in March, and a new patent also suggests the largest smartphone maker in the world apparently wants foldable tablets to be a thing, too.
Per a Phone Arena post, the device would include a large display and a design that’s based on two hinges that divide the tablet’s front panel into three sections. When you unfold it, the device looks like a normal tablet, but if you prefer a smaller version of the display, you can simply fold the display’s left side behind the rest. That, according to the report, deactivates the relevant portion of the panel while leaving the others active.
“In an alternative move to these two options,” the report continues, “if users are looking for a smartphone-sized package in any given moment, the right side of the display (which also contains the rear camera) can be folded over. All users then need to do is flip the device over and use the area of the display that is visible.”
It’s not at all a guarantee, of course, that Samsung will ever move forward with such a product. It’s possible the company will want to wait and see what the market reaction to its coming foldable phone looks like before rolling out a tablet that folds. Regarding the phone,
as we reported at the beginning of the week, Samsung is going to start with an initial production of at least 1 million units. The company might make more, depending on customer reaction, which presumably would also feed into any decision around whether to proceed with a foldable tablet.
As a reminder, Samsung is expected to show off the foldable phone at Mobile World Congress in February, ahead of an official launch in March. And it’s expected to cost around 2 million won, or about $1,770.
