This is the new foldable phone by Xiaomi. After watching the video I’m rather surprised at how cool and futuristic this thing feels. Xiaomi’s President Lin Bin published the video on the Chinese social network Weibo, calling it the world’s first double foldable phone. This expandable phone/foldable tablet is worthy of a sci-fi movie. “This symmetrical double-folded form perfectly combines the experience of the tablet and mobile phone,” Bin said on his post. He mentions that it is still a prototype, not the final product, but it is polished enough to show in public. The Instagram-ratio tablet folds on two sides, top and bottom, getting into a rather compact phone size — much smaller than any standard soap bar phones. When extended it looks very thin, but folded it’s thicker than regular models. MORE: Best Smartphones - Here Are the 10 Best Phones Available Bin says that the company had to come up with its own hinge technology to fold the display (no mention of who is the panel manufacturer), the screen protective material, and adapt their Android-based MIUI operating system to create the Xiaomi foldable. Bin also said that it may be called Xiaomi Dual Flex or Xiaomi MIX Flex, although he’s open to suggestions from Weibo commenters. There is no mention on how durable this is or folding tests statistics. Would it last enough to make its guts obsolete? And how much would this cost? We can assume it is going to be expensive but, being Xiaomi, it will probably beat Samsung and most of the foldable phones coming in 2019. Image credits: Xiaomi<doc-sep>China’s Xiaomi has become the latest smartphone maker to tease a folding smartphone, dropping the below video clip of its president and co-founder, Bin Lin, fondling the device on social media today. The twist is the tablet does not have a single center parting but rather two folds that divide it into three panels, with Xiaomi claiming in a tweet: “It is the world’s first ever double folding phone.” The video shows Bin contemplating a tablet-sized touchscreen device before quickly turning it on its side, taking it into landscape orientation, where he performs the party trick — folding two panels of screen, one at each side, back behind the tablet to form a slightly chunky looking phablet. Excited to share this video of a special Xiaomi smartphone from our President and Co-founder Bin Lin. It is the world’s first ever double folding phone — that’s pretty cool, isn’t it? #xiaomi #foldingphone #technology pic.twitter.com/iBj0n3vIbW — Wang Xiang (@XiangW_) January 23, 2019 The video is edited so it cuts from front view to back at the moment of the fold so the actual folding action is not seen from the front. But from the back the two folded wings go dark after being folded. When the video cuts back to the front there’s a slight spinning of the screen, as the software appears to grapple momentarily with the new form factor, before it stablizes in portrait orientation. The phablet form of the device resembles the bezel-less “infinity display” design of a handset like the 2018 Samsung Galaxy S8 — albeit more squat looking than the tall 18.5:9 aspect ratio of the S8. Xiaomi’s tweet teaser does not include any details about how near (or indeed far off) a market launch of the device might be. We’ve reached out to the company with questions about the prototype and any launch plans. Update: A spokesman pointed us to a post on Bin’s Weibo account where he asks his followers for feedback on the prototype, and suggests Xiaomi is still weighing up whether to bring the folding phone to market, writing: “If you like it, we will consider making a mass production machine in the future.” He also asks for name suggestions, saying Xiaomi is toying with two: Xiaomi Dual Flex or Xiaomi MIX Flex. “This symmetrical double-folded form perfectly combines the experience of the tablet and mobile phone, which is both practical and beautiful,” he writes [translated via Google Translate], saying building the prototype entailed “conquering a series of technical problems such as flexible folding screen technology, four-wheel drive folding shaft technology, flexible cover technology, and MIUI adaptation.” “We made the first folding screen mobile phone, which should be the world’s first double folding mobile phone,” he adds, again taking a tentative tone vis-à-vis a potential launch time frame. In recent months a handful of folding smartphone prototypes have been demoed by mobile makers, including a booklet-style folding slab from Samsung — trailed as incoming for years but finally teased officially last fall — which also appears to transforms into a rather chunky handset. An invite to a February 20 Samsung launch event for the forthcoming Galaxy S10, sent out to press two weeks ago, also included a conspicuous centerfold in its graphic teaser. Ergo, a commercial launch from Samsung looks imminent. While, at CES, a little known Chinese OEM called Royole beat others to the punch by showing off a folder in the flesh. In tablet form the Android-powered FlexPai, as the device was christened, is 7.8-inches. But once folded in half the gizmo is left with an unsightly gap between the screen pieces, bulking up the resulting smartphone. Xiaomi’s triptych looks to offer a more pleasing design for handling the inevitable air gap created by a folding screen by concealing the ends in the middle of the dual folded panels. Side tucks certainly look more visually pleasing. That said, two folds could mean a higher risk of screen problems — if the folding mechanism isn’t robust enough to handle lots of bending back and forth. It’s also far from clear whether consumers will generally take to folding phones, or snub them as fiddly and gimmicky. In recent years smartphone design has converged around a phablet-sized touchscreen and little else. So adding any fresh mechanical complication is a bit of a risk given how smooth and hermetically sealed smartphones have otherwise become. But a clutch of Android OEMs are going to try their luck, regardless. And with a saturated smartphone market, stalled growth and competition fiercer than ever, you can see why they’re pushing the boat out — or, well, bending the screen back — to try to stand out.<doc-sep>Something to look forward to: The rumors are true: Xiaomi is working on a foldable phone. The Chinese firm’s president and co-founder, Lin Bin, posted a video on Weibo that shows the device in action, and it looks like one of the best implementations of the design we’ve seen to date. At the start of the month, prolific leaker Evan Blass revealed a clip that allegedly shows Xiaomi's folding phone, which looks almost identical to the one from Bin’s video. In the latest footage, the prototype initially resembles a small, if slightly curved, tablet. Bin then moves it to a landscape orientation before folding in both sides, making it look more like a phone. The power button is in a position where it can be easily accessed while in either tablet or phone mode. To develop the device, Bin said Xiaomi had overcome “a series of technical problems such as flexible folding screen technology, four-wheel drive folding shaft technology, flexible cover technology, and MIUI adaptation.” The company is considering naming the phone either Mi Dual Flex or Mi MIX Flex, though it’s open to suggestions from the public. Importantly, Bin said Xiaomi would consider making a mass production machine in the future if people "like it," but with Samsung, LG, Oppo, Royole, and Huawei all confirmed or rumored to be working on similar devices, it would be surprising if Xiaomi didn’t join the party—especially as its bendy phone looks pretty good.<doc-sep>
Chinese tech firm Xiaomi has unveiled a foldable smartphone with three screen sections. Footage appears to show the device fully extended in a landscape orientation before the edges are bent and folded backwards, creating a smaller central display. The radical design is currently a mere engineering concept but the firm, dubbed 'Chinese Apple', says it may go into production in the future, if demand is sufficient. Xiaomi co-founder and president Lin Bin said the device remains unnamed and revealed the tech giant is open to suggestions from the public. Two existing potential names include the Xiaomi Dual Flex and Xiaomi MIX Flex. Chinese tech firm Xiaomi has unveiled a foldable smartphone with three screen sections. Two folds appear down the screen when held in a landscape orientation and these slabs of screen then nestle behind the remaining operational screen Lin Bin said in his Weibo post: 'After conquering a series of technical problems such as flexible folding screen technology, flexible cover technology, and MIUI adaptation, we have produced the first folding screen mobile phone. 'It should be the world's first double folding mobile phone. 'This symmetrical double-folded form perfectly combines the user experience of the tablet and mobile phone, making it both practical and attractive. 'Although this phone is an engineering model, I’d like to show it to everyone. 'Welcoming everyone to forward / comment / like. If everyone likes it, we will consider mass producing the phone in the future. 'Also, we’d like to name this engineering model. What should we name it? I thought of two: Xiaomi Dual Flex, Xiaomi MIX Flex. Welcome suggestions!' The radical design is currently a mere engineering concept but the firm, dubbed 'Chinese Apple', says it may later go into production if demand is sufficient. Xiaomi co-founder and president Lin Bin said the device remains unnamed and revealed the tech giant is open to suggestions from the public Footage appears to show the device fully extended in a landscape orientation before the edges are bent and folded backwards, creating a smaller central display. The handset converts flawlessly from a tablet-sized device with an approximate 4:3 ratio to a more traditional and compact phone-like device when the screen is folded (pictured) The device, which may be called the Dual Flex or MIX Flex, becomes more of a traditional and compact mobile phone device and the folded back pieces of screen deactivate and go black (pictured) The handset converts flawlessly from a tablet-sized device with an approximate 4:3 ratio to a more traditional and compact phone-like device when the screen is folded. Details about the handset besides its revolutionary screen are sparse as the firm says it is an early-stage engineering model. There is no sign of a camera but the firm appears to have altered the MIUI software for the foldable phone as the screen automatically adjusts when moved and folded. The transition is far from flawless with the software grappling briefly with the folding but the demonstration is a stunning proof of concept. If the device makes it to the production line it will likely face stiff competition from Samsung, Lenovo and Huawei in the emerging and rapidly surging folding phone market.