The future of smartphones could be foldable - combining a tablet with a smartphone in one device that can fit in your pocket.
The new devices will soon hit the market, but some argue that there could be a design flaw in foldables, reports Perspecs.
However, they are still causing excitement and others predict foldables will make current smartphones "look like technological dinosaurs".
The Claim
Tech Republic's Jack Wallen argues that foldable smartphones are "more fad than forever devices". He calls the new devices a "gimmick", adding that the smartphone industry is "no stranger to such snake-oil salesmanship".
He argues that the Achilles' heel of foldables is the fact that they fold - and could crease. Wallen warns: "Bend it enough (you don't even need to fold it in half) and eventually a nasty crease will appear on an otherwise unblemished surface."
He predicts that the crease will be an eyesore, as well as preventing the user from seeing content and leaving the screen unresponsive to touch.
Wallen argues that users should not fall for the mobile industry's attempt to convince you that foldables are the next thing you need.
He concludes: "Bottom line: You bend a foldable material enough, it eventually leaves a mark. The only way around it is to not open the foldable phone.
"That's like having a Pixel 3 and not using the camera, or a Samsung Galaxy 10 and using Bixby over Google Assistant, or having Zuckerberg's personal phone number and never calling him to complain about Facebook privacy."
The Counterclaim
However, USA Today's Bob O'Donnell calls foldable smartphones a "really big deal", and they have been "generating a tangible sense of excitement... and for good reason".
He says that foldables "represent the first genuinely new design for mobile phones in over 10 years".
O'Donnell argues: "By combining the advantage of a larger screen with a smaller device size, foldables offer the best of both worlds.
"In fact, I think the advancement is important enough that by 2021 or so, existing smartphones will look and feel like technological dinosaurs - and most people will move to foldable designs".
He adds that their screens offer "the first chance to produce highly differentiated products in some time". Traditional smartphone screens do not often vary, while foldables will have "screens that fold in, others will have screens that fold out, some will have multiple different screens, some only one and each will likely feature unique variations in camera placement, hinge design, and more".
O'Donnell says that he is "very much looking forward to this very exciting, and very different future" that foldables bring.
The Facts
The Samsung Fold is set to be the first foldable smartphone on the market. Announced alongside the Samsung Galaxy S10 range, it will be released on April 26 in the United States, and May 3 in Europe - and it will cost around £1,515.
Huawei is expected to follow with their foldable Mate X. There is no release date for the device, but it will cost around £2,000. The Chinese company is confident for the future of foldables, saying that half of their flagship phones could be foldable in two years.
Motorola is also rumoured to be rebooting the Razr brand with the Motorola Razr V4 - the iconic flip phone could return as a foldable.
Google confirmed that they will be providing support for foldable screens at the Android Dev Summit in November last year. Apple also applied for another patent for a foldable phone in 2017.
