Far from being relegated into the annals of history, folding type phones are now promising a comeback in a major way. As the newer generation of these devices are coming with higher price points than their more common static-screen counterparts, we want to look at just what makes these special, and if they’re worth waiting for with your next upgrade.
The same, but different
Older styles of folding phones, more commonly known as flip-phones, operated under a different philosophy than what is coming next.
This followed a pattern as set by the earliest mobile phones. The first among these were roughly the size of suitcases; mobile, but not easily so. Eventually, these worked their way around to enormous self-contained devices, which then miniaturised to levels which would even fit in a user’s pocket.
Flip phones were seen as a natural evolution of this, bringing the devices even smaller in size. It was the advent of smartphone technology that turned this trajectory around. More powerful devices meant phones were for more than just texts and calls, and this necessitated the ability to see more.
In this regard, foldable phones take the same smaller profile as attainable with a foldable device and marry it with a larger screen, which is possible through new flexible display technology.
The advantages
Probably the most visible advantage of folding phones comes from their ability to display a wider area at once. Since these fold out, they effectively double the screen area of the devices we see today. While this holds great promise for work, it’s the opportunities for gaming that many of us look forward to most.
Triple-A games that require powerful hardware to be used at their full potential are set to benefit from this technological progression, as one of the advantages of these systems is their improved computing architecture and enhanced graphical capabilities.
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With current smartphones hitting a limit on width and height, we are reaching a boundary on how much hardware can be packed into the units. Folding phones can combat this by increasing the depth and total available space, leading to the potential for more memory, better cooling, and faster CPUs.
Worth early adopting?
Whether or not it is worth buying into the biggest new devices such as the Galaxy Fold comes down to your interest in the cutting edge of mobile tech.
The first big-name releases on this front won’t be cheap and in the case of the Fold came with some embarrassing launch problems forcing the firm to pause roll-out, but longterm they could very well be a worthwhile investment for major enthusiasts.
Otherwise, we would encourage waiting a few months to see how the reviews roll in, and how these devices perform over time. We wouldn’t be surprised to see these new types of phone become standard in the future, but as with any type of new technology, time will be the best indicator of success.