Here's a Huawei concept that Samsung won't touch with a 10-foot pole

I often complain about how both Samsung and Apple have become boring lately. Sure, the new iPhones and Galaxies always make it to the best phones to buy list easily, but that doesn't make them thrilling. That's sad, since these handsets were the bee's knees in terms of novelty and innovation.

But boy, it's nice to be boring in certain situations!

I'm saying this because of Huawei's new concept phone – of course, nothing is official and we're strictly in rumors territory, but leaks are pretty important nevertheless. It looks so weird that I, frankly, don't see a way this would become a standard.

Too rare to live

The thing that got me of all people – a certified exotic phone enjoyer and Chinese flagship aficionado – to utter these blasphemous words is a recent report about Huawei's alleged plans for the future.

Here, take a look:



That's a render of a clamshell foldable that folds twice, not just once like the Galaxy Z Flip 7, for example.

I'm a big believer in foldables. Not just the Galaxy Z Fold 7 or the Oppo Find N6, but I fancy monsters like Samsung's Galaxy Z TriFold or the Mate XT Ultimate Design, the world's first trifoldable.

But a trifold clamshell? OK, why? "We're Huawei and we can do it" is not the best argument here.

To get more screen space? Sure. That's a fact. But the form factor is… not very practical. Of course, that's just me. If you think such a handset is what you're missing, be my guest.

But what's the problem?

To me, this concept phone is not practical not because it has too much extra screen real estate, but because of how it's been distributed. Holding this with one hand would be inconvenient in portrait and a nightmare in landscape.

What's more, what will apps look like? Sure, you'll be able to fit more social media posts, or your daily Google calendar would look better on that, but is it worth it? This phone, if you pardon my French, resembles more of a smart TV remote than a handset.

Got long fingers?

At some point, phone makers have to remember that a smartphone is supposed to fit in a human hand, not double as a TV remote.

Taller aspect ratios can make devices look sleek on a spec sheet, but there comes a point where reaching the top of the screen requires either finger gymnastics or a second hand. Imagine trying to pull down the notification shade on a phone this tall if you're toying at the bottom.

For me, practicality wins over skyscraper design.

One boring phone for me, please

As I said, I love exotic phones and foldables in particular – it's great to unfold an extra screen and get that mini tablet experience out of your pocket.

But let's keep it real – most of us would be far better off with an iPhone 17 Pro, the Galaxy S26 Ultra or the OnePlus 15.

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