Motorola has just patented a new device and they’re going with the trend, by making it a foldable smartphone, that turns into a tablet. Their hinge is more visible than others we’ve seen so far, to be honest. The patent was filed with the WIPO on September 13th 2016, so Moto has been at it for a few years now.
The foldable device can be unfolded as a tablet and the patent was approved on March 13th 2018. We’re dealing with a setup very similar to the ZTE Axon M, to be frank. The device acts like a normal phone when folded and a legit tablet when opened up. Its main camera is positioned at the top left and the speaker is on the top right. We also find a hinge in the middle in order to properly fold the device.
Once it’s unfolded you will get two screens to interact with and enjoy the full tablet experience. Motorola also wants to create a cover to the device, that will protect both its body and act as a wireless charger. That case is removable and has a special vent for the camera. Motorola’s CEO, Yang Yuanquing detailed his ideas for such foldables ever since MWC 2018. He claimed that such new technology like foldable screens means that we should see more innovation in smartphone designs.
It’s not very clear what preparation stage this device has reached, but we’re in the ascension stage of foldables for sure. We see weekly patents of the sort from Samsung and Microsoft, so somethings’ got to give in 2019. I’m sure that Moto will also introduce modularity in the equation somehow.
