Samsung showed off a new folding screen phone prototype that is quite unique. Because the cellphone screen can be folded in two directions up to 360 degrees.
Samsung Display, the subsidiary in charge of producing screens for Samsung devices, demonstrated the prototype at CES 2023. The display prototype is called 'Flex In & Out' which can rotate 360 degrees, meaning it can be folded in and out.
Not only does it have a unique mechanism, this display also uses a different hinge design, resulting in a screen with less visible crease marks.
The hinge design used is called 'water-drop hinge' which has a looser shape when the phone is folded inward. This hinge will also relieve pressure on the screen.
Not only that, this waterdrop hinge design also allows the two cellphone screens to be closed more tightly without any gaps near the hinges, as can be seen in the following image.
This is not the first time that Samsung Display has shown off a prototype of a foldable screen phone that can be folded in any direction. In 2021, this vendor from South Korea will also display the 'Flex In & Out' display at the International Meeting for Information Display.
However, the design approach is different because this version has a screen that can be folded like the letter 'S' and the screen is divided into several segments, as quoted from The Verge, Saturday (21/1/2023).
Of course, this display is just a prototype, but it is not impossible that this new model screen will appear on the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 5. It is rumored that the fifth generation folding screen phone will come with a screen that has minimal traces of folds thanks to the waterdrop hinge design.
Currently, the Galaxy Z Fold 4 and Galaxy Z Flip 4 still use a 'U' hinge design which makes the folds on the screen more obvious. Even though competing folding screen phones such as the Oppo Find N2 and the third generation Motorola Razr already use a waterdrop hinge design.