Being the age I am, I’m just old enough to remember flip-phones.
A relatively simple concept that has been on my mind lately for reasons I’ll get to. Widely considered obsolete unless you just want a cheap phone to make calls etc., these phones featured a screen on one side, a keypad on the other, with a hinge joint between the two.
The reason that this device has been dragged back to the front of my brain in recent weeks is because I am reminded of them every time I see this:
To be clear: I’m aware that this foldable iphone is not the first foldable modern smartphone (I know Samsung released them years ago also).
But I’m also left wondering: what is the point? I think I can perfectly understand the use of flip phones as they were when they were popular, but foldable phones I just can’t see the benefit. As far as I can see, these foldable type of phones offer little to no benefit that you couldn’t get from, say a regular iPhone or Samsung phone, in terms of the consumer and how they are used in general life. I get that the hardware/software may be different, but that’s not going to be a factor in most people’s daily lives (you’re not going to care about the type of core, or the screen resolution when you make a phone call, etc.) It seems like it’s more of a gimmick from the companies making them to try and make more sales, but even if that’s the case, the product must have something unique to offer, so what is it about foldable phones that are so unique besides the gimmick of folding?
They fail faster on average. Just because someone out there is still driving an AMC Gremlin doesn't make it a good car
Maybe the original designs, but not the new screens. The "failures" on old screens were mostly from idiots trying to peel off the plastic layer. It's difficult for engineers to underestimate the public.
Of course, Apple bots feed Lemmy and Reddit, so now that Apple sells Samsung screens, I'm sure reliability will magically increase.
That is interesting. I admit I don't keep up with the state of the art on foldable devices because they didn't appeal to me (whenever I need a big screen, I also need a keyboard).
Someone else said they use their foldable phone to read PDFs; I can see how that would be useful.
Realistically, could a foldable phone last 5 years of daily use? (5yr is my minimum durability standard. I actually use my phones longer)