It would be wrong to think that Apple and Samsung are the only companies working on smartphones with foldable deploys, as Huawei’s latest patent reveals an idea for the same that might release later this year. The patent which was filed back in September last year clarifies that the foldable device will have a single screen that bends instead of two separate displays that would need to be attached by a hinge.
Published on the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) website, Huawei’s patent is way different from ZTE’s take on a foldable smartphone. The Huawei smartphone, unlike the Axon M, will feature a single panel that would open to resemble a tablet and not feature dual displays like the ZTE device. The idea sounds much like the rumoured Microsoft Surface Phone which is still in its initial stages and we don’t quite yet know about the Huawei-made handset as well.
The news comes months after the Chinese smartphone giant’s CEO Richard Yu revealed that the company already had a working sample for a foldable device, which was still in development. With the latest report, the foldable smartphone from Huawei could release anytime soon, supposedly within the end of 2018, if the company puts a finishing touch to the design and UI on the handset.
Accompanying Huawei in the race to making foldable smartphones are Samsung and Apple. If rumours are to be believed, Samsung has been way ahead at publishing a patent for such a smartphone which is expected to be the upcoming Galaxy X device, set for a launch this year. Apple is also reported to be internally working on a foldable display device with a possible collaboration with LG but a release of such a smartphone could only be expected for as early as 2020.