Two Major Electronics Brands Suspend Small Foldable Phone Lines, Plan New Device Form
In a surprising move, two well-known international electronics brands have decided to suspend their product lines of small foldable phones and do not plan to launch any iterations this year. According to popular blogger @digitalchatstation, one of the companies may launch a new device form next year instead of the traditional folding design.
This news comes after earlier reports from February this year where the same blogger disclosed, “Among the top 5 brands, one has suspended the development of folding screen projects, and two have stopped the development of small folding products.” This information was later corroborated by another blogger @wangzaibaishitong, who added, “Last month I learned that a company planned to suspend the folding project, even though the company’s folding screen products launched last year performed well.”
In the Chinese domestic market, manufacturers such as Huawei, OPPO, vivo, and Samsung have launched vertically small foldable phones. However, new products related to Xiaomi and HONOR have not yet been released, with no news of stopping updates. Additionally, a report by the Korea Economic Daily in February stated that major Chinese smartphone manufacturers OPPO and vivo have decided to withdraw from the folding screen mobile phone market, although OPPO responded that “the folding series products are advancing as planned,” without providing specific details.
Looking ahead, the future form of mobile phones remains uncertain. For example, OPPO showcased a scroll screen concept phone called OPPO X 2021 at the 2020 Future Technology Conference. This concept phone features a screen that can be unfolded like a scroll, increasing from 6.7 inches to 7.4 inches when unfolded, offering a 4:3 screen ratio for an enhanced visual experience.
Similarly, vivo has also filed patent applications for an expandable screen mobile phone that can be extended from the right side. This design allows users to increase the screen size for specific activities such as photography, document reading, or video watching. These innovative designs hint at a future where smartphones may develop in a more flexible and adaptable direction.