April 27, 2018
Earlier this year, news came out that the Chinese telecommunications conglomerate, Huawei, is all set to launch a foldable phone in November this year, along with speculations of ending the monocracy of Samsung and Apple in the field of innovative telecommunications devices.
However, to finish these speculations, and perhaps to make the situation even more worrying for Apple, Samsung, too, has gotten onto the battleground by winning a patent for yet another concept of a multi-fold tablet.
The tablet, as per the report published by Forbes, will have different functionalities in correspondence with its varied configurations. It will be foldable in two separate places and will have features like pressure sensor, as well as sensors for angular velocity, illumination, proximity, acceleration, strain gauge, and gyroscope.
As shown in the image above, the two folds on the edges can act as the smart and transparent cover for the main display, reducing the size of the device to make it more fitting for functionalities like attending a phone call or reading a text message. The other discussed functionality of the folds is to turn the larger section of the fold into a huge keyboard, making the top fold of the notification bar act as the display.
It is notable that Samsung was already granted a patent for one of its multi-fold tablet concepts back in September 2016. It is the second successful attempt made by the conglomerate, making it both more and less remarkable for the speculators making conclusions after viewing it cursorily.
However, the filing of patents does not always entail product realization. In fact, only a few of the patents claimed and won over such concepts ever see the light of the market. Although, this concept has far more probabilities of actually getting realized than others. Why? Because of the sheer feasibility of the overall concept and its varied components. For example, the patent discusses the tablet’s ability to make and receive phone calls, which with other tablets doesn’t seem like a great idea owing to their cumbersome size, but with multi-fold technology, it is not only doable but also practical.
Another great thing about this patent is the active participation of Samsung in researching for flexible OLED technology. In fact, the company presented a demo of similar technology back in 2013, though it has not yet managed to present a prototype of it. So the only reasons why there is a delay in these foldable tablets going to market any time soon, is that either the company has not yet cracked the science of creating a stable and flexible display, or it is still working on the UI of the Galaxy X.
In any case, it is pretty clear that the world of tablets is in for a complete revolution. The only debate remains on whether it will be led by the subtle yet utilitarian use of Apple pencil, or with the multipurpose foldable technology by Huawei and/or Samsung.
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