Samsung unveiled its foldable display at SDC 2018 last week but didn't show off the device. The actual design was camouflaged in a boxy shell. Probably because the company is still in the process of finalizing some design elements.
A new report out of South Korea claims that Samsung is yet to decide on a hinge for the device. The supplier has reportedly sent five options to Samsung out of which the company will choose one.
Five hinge options for the foldable smartphone
South Korean component manufacturing company KH Vatec will reportedly be supplying the hinge for this device. It's said to have delivered five hinge samples to Samsung for the foldable smartphone. The hinge will be a core component of this smartphone as the device won't be able to fold without it.
One of the samples is said to leave a tiny space between the panels so that even though they touch when the device is closed, the panels don't shatter easily when there's an impact. This hinge is also said to have a gear which would allow the panels to be positioned at various angles similar to how you can position a laptop's display.
The five samples that it has reportedly sent to Samsung are variations of this hinge. Each version either adds or removes a feature. For example, Samsung could go for a hinge without the gears, depending on the user interface finalized for the foldable device. The gears would be excessive for just folding and unfolding the device. That's if the UI doesn't account for varying positions of the panels to provide multiple use cases.
An industry official cited in the report says that Samsung is yet to decide on a hinge for the foldable smartphone. That's why the supplier hasn't started mass producing them. Samsung will reportedly be unveiling the foldable device in February next year. It will then likely be released across the globe in March 2019.
