Cool Demo: Watch Xiaomi's Foldable Phone Fold Over Twice
Today we're taking a peek at a very brief video in which a foldable display-toting smartphone is shown in full function. You may have seen the futuristic-looking Samsung's Galaxy Fold, a device with a display that folds like a book. The folks at the China-based brand Xiaomi have a device they call the "Mi Fold" that also aims to impress. This device doesn't just fold once – it folds twice.
The Xiaomi Mi Fold was revealed in a super-short demonstration earlier this year. Now we're getting a look at the same device in an iteration that's likely much closer to a final product than its predecessor. The version we saw before was likely an early demo unit – this one is probably nearly ready to hit the market.
The video you're seeing here is hosted by the Russia-based Xiaomi news source Xiaomishka, but likely originated in China proper. The first video was posted by Xiaomi itself and showed an enthusiastic co-founder of Xiaomi, Lin Bin. This demonstration is shown below, just in case you've not yet seen it for yourself.
Based on the very small amount of launch information Xiaomi's delivered thus far, it's clear they're not intending on beating Samsung to the punch with a market-ready foldable smartphone. Instead, they're doing their duty to appear up-to-speed with the technology without risking a major failure in the market with a smartphone that's not ready to be compatible with consumers.
The compatibility issues between foldable display smartphones and consumers has mostly to do with cost. At the moment, the one foldable smartphone announced and market-ready is Samsung's Galaxy Fold, and it'll come with quite the hefty price tag. The Samsung Galaxy Fold will be released in late April for approximately $2,000 USD. That price covers the 4G LTE version of the smartphone, while a 5G version has yet to be formally announced for release.
For Samsung, this is a real test by fire. They're the first to market with a foldable smartphone – unless you count these guys – so they've got a lot to prove. They've got the stress testing covered physically – now we'll have to wait and see if the device holds up to the most potentially devastating stress test of all – the open market.