When you think about foldable phones, Samsung probably comes to mind first. The Korean giant talked about foldable phones for years before the first-generation Galaxy Fold arrived. But that very first device proved the technology wasn’t quite ready for commercial foldable handsets. Samsung needed two more years to deliver its first big foldable success, the Galaxy Z Fold 3. But other Android vendors have started fighting back, and there’s another foldable that will soon challenge Samsung’s throne: The Vivo X Fold.
Vivo X Fold design
Following the success of the Fold 3 and Flip 3, two Chinese vendors launched foldable handsets. Oppo and Honor released the Find N and Magic V a few weeks apart. Xiaomi also launched its first-gen foldable handset in early 2021, although it wasn’t widely available. Huawei started making foldable handsets at the same time as Samsung, but those phones have suffered from the US ban on the company.
That’s why your best bet is the Fold 3 or Flip 3 when it comes to foldables right now. However, 2022 might deliver many more Fold 4 rivals, and some of them might be available in more regions than just China. The Vivo X Fold is the next challenger. The handset has appeared in teasers and leaks over the past few weeks, signaling an imminent launch.
The first Vivo X Fold images dropped a few days ago, with Vivo posting teasers on its social media profiles in China. Local leakers joined in as well.
The renders showed the same design that we saw on the Fold 3, Find N, and Magic V. The main foldable screen is placed internally, while a secondary display sits on the outside. Vivo confirmed it will unveil the handset on April 11th.
The specs
Like the Find N, the Vivo X Fold has a better external display design than the Galaxy Fold when it comes to the external display. The Galaxy Fold’s external display is tall and narrow, an aspect ratio that makes it harder to use in one-handed operation.
The Vivo X Fold’s external screen seems easier to use. Moreover, both the Vivo X Fold displays support 120Hz refresh rates, according to specs leaks. Both screens should be OLED panels.
The 8-inch foldable screen is in line with what’s available from the competition. That effectively means you’re operating a tablet-like device when the screen is unfolded.
Other specs include the Snapdragon 8 Gen 1 System-on-Chip (SoC) that powers most 2022 flagships. The SoC comes with 12GB of RAM, according to a new benchmark leak. The phone runs Android 12, as expected.
Finally, the Vivo X Fold features a quad-lens Zeiss camera on the back. We’re looking at a 50-megapixel wide lens, 48-megapixel ultra-wide camera, 12-megapixel telephoto lens (2x), and an 8-megapixel telephoto lens (5x).
The Vivo and Oppo brands belong to the same giant, BBK. It’s likely that the Vivo X Fold will follow in the Find N’s footsteps when it comes to pricing. At around $1,200, the Find N is cheaper than the Fold 3. But there’s no telling whether the new foldable will be available outside of China. We’ll have to wait for the April 11th press event for that.
