Samsung foldable phone final design details sound hopeful

It was recently reported that Samsung was still on the fence on what specific design it would use for its long-awaited foldable phone. That would be a bit worrying considering how late it would be based on its own timetable. The good news is that Samsung has apparently already made that decision last July and has finalized it just in time to get production started this month. And based on that same report, it might indeed be the foldable phone some have been dreaming of.

You might be surprised at the number of ways you could actually design a foldable phone. You can have one that folds like a book or one that folds like a flip phone. And then you can also choose whether the screen folds inside or outside, like the recent Royale FlexiPai. Samsung has apparently opted for a design that closely resembles its very first concept video, there the device folds like a book with the screen inside, but with one important change.

According to Korean site The Bell, Samsung's first foldable phone will actually have two screens. The primary and largest one will be a 7.3-inch foldable panel. When folded, however, it will reveal a second 4.6-inch screen on the outside that lets you access the device normally like a phone without having to open it up. More practical definitely, but it will come at a cost.

The hinge, which will be made by Korean company KH Vatec, will be special as well. The special hinge will supposedly allow the two sides of the folding panel to touch each other but still leave some space to reduce the risk of shattering the glass when the device is dropped. It will also have a gear that will let users fold the device in fixed angles, one of those turning it into a makeshift laptop.

Unsurprisingly, no one thinks Samsung's first foldable phone will be cheap. The additional screen, presumed bigger battery, and special hinge will definitely drive up the costs. There won't be that many made either, and rarity, more often than not, makes things even more expensive than they would normally be.