For the last couple of years phones have become less exciting. Smartphones have definitely come a long way but lately phone innovation seems to have reached a stagnation point.

Smartphone designs have become homogenized: the same rectangular slate shape. Back in the days, phones used to have a plethora of different form factors that made them much more interesting. But things are set to change as brands have started to bring back exciting new form factors with the innovation of folding & dual screen smartphones.

Foldable phones

2019’s most exciting new tech was foldable smartphones, a huge leap for mobile technology. Samsung, the market leader of bringing bizarre new ideas to the table, took the lead by launching world’s

first widely available foldable smartphone, Samsung Galaxy Fold. It has a large inward folding screen & a smaller outer-screen.

Huawei & Motorola followed suit with their own foldables: Huawei Mate XS bringing a single outward folding display that can be folded to be used like a normal phone.

Motorola revived the Razr flip-phones with a foldable screen that flips open to become a full-sized smartphone with a small cover display.

Dual Screen phones

LG G8X’s externally attachable second screen case was another interesting product. Microsoft also brought the Surface Duo, a true dual screen phone with a 360° hinge connecting two separate screens. It’s a practical approach, letting you simultaneously do tasks on two displays.

LG Wing is the newest addition to the dual screen family. This offbeat phone sports a whacky form factor: a normal screen on the front which can be swivelled to the top with a small second screen sitting below, letting you hold it in portrait browsing social media on the bottom while watching videos in landscape on top.

Pros

Foldable & dual-screen phones have garnered a lot of attention, captivating tech enthusiasts & consumers around the globe. Many tech pundits have labelled them as the “Future”. So here’s the real question, are they actually the future?

The array of new form factors of these phones open the door to endless possibilities. On devices like the Galaxy Fold, you get a large workspace where multiple apps can be opened on the same screen so you can do a multitude of tasks at once.

Portability is a huge plus point of these devices. With display sizes rapidly increasing, being able to have a tablet sized screen in a pocketable form factor with a cover screen that can be used like a normal phone is a profound advantage. Razr style flip foldables can pack a full-sized phone in an iPod sized shell, making them extremely portable.

LG Wing is a practical implementation that shows the possibilities these phones can open. It can be used like a gimbal with the smaller screen acting as a grip while having all the camera controls on it. Its second screen also allows drivers to use a map on the main screen with calls & messages coming on the second-screen.

Cons

These incredibly futuristic phones have their fair share of issues & compromises that also need to be considered.

Ludicrous prices coupled with software complications caused by most apps not being optimized for their form factors, foldables having noticeable crease where it folds, durability concerns & often poor battery-life make it difficult for consumers to pick them over usual smartphones.

Conclusion

Despite the flaws, there’s an immense potential for foldables & dual screens to become the future of mobile industry due to the boundless possibilities of having practical features that make day-to-day tasks easier & probably redefine what phones are capable of doing.

Humans strive to be more productive: brands exploring fresh ideas to make phones a productivity tool is a testament to that. Companies are working on improving the faults in these phones. With 2nd generation of folding phones addressing last generation’s issues, it’s a step in the right direction. With more big brands like Microsoft joining the game, it’s plausible that within the next few years, foldable & dual-screen phones will be polished enough with a cheaper price, to be worth buying for a larger consumer base.

Written By: Nafee Ahnaf Siraj

Edited By: Samiha Rahman