Flip phones' resurrection with foldable display may beat the Galaxy Fold or Mate X designs

It seems that people are disappointed by the two current approaches to foldable phones - the horizontal in-folding type of the Galaxy Fold or the out-folding Mate X - at least on paper. There is another way, and it is exactly the one you prefer.

We probed you last week on Sharp's vertical in-folding phone patents that have now been translated into the working prototype you see in the video above, and the majority of our respondents went with what is essentially a foldable clamshell of sorts, followed by the Galaxy Fold "innie" design.

Is Sharp's 'flip phone' foldable a better concept than the Galaxy Fold or Mate X?

Yes

62.82%

Nah, I prefer the Galaxy Fold approach

21.37%

Nah, I prefer the Mate X approach

15.81%

In fact, Sharp's approach is closer to what we imagined a foldable handset would be - an old-fashioned flip phone that has an uninterrupted screen where the hinge would be, making it compact to carry, and giving you a huge display when you need it.

Sharp's 6.2" OLED screen is certainly ready and can be folded 300,000 times before it creases, says Sharp. The more foldable form factors, the merrier and the resulting phone may end up being more compact than the Samsung or Huawei creations.

The Galaxy Fold and Mate X are chasing a different concept, and are rather bulky when folded in addition to impractical when unfurled. Watching YouTube on the unfurled display, for instance, renders 20%+ of their large displays underutilized which defeats the purpose of lugging a bulky and expensive foldable phone with you.

Foldable clamshell displays win, fatality!

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Daniel, a devoted tech writer at PhoneArena since 2010, has been engrossed in mobile technology since the Windows Mobile era. His expertise spans mobile hardware, software, and carrier networks, and he's keenly interested in the future of digital health, car connectivity, and 5G. Beyond his professional pursuits, Daniel finds balance in travel, reading, and exploring new tech innovations, while contemplating the ethical and privacy implications of our digital future.