Samsung is set to test the waters regarding its foldable dual-screen smartphone which is likely the highly-anticipated Galaxy X. However, it may take a little more time before the prototypes are developed.
The Korean conglomerate is said to be still in the process of requesting components to manufacture 2,000 to 3,000 prototypes of the Galaxy X which is also known as Project Valley. According to Tom's Guide, the news hails from Korea particularly from "The Investor", an online business news service. Phone Arena cited sources saying the foldable dual-screen prototype of the Galaxy X will have two AMOLED displays which will be connected by a hinge.
Samsung will use these prototypes to see if they will actually work and to gather data and ideas. The experiment will also gauge the commercial viability of the Galaxy X. The test run will determine if Samsung will proceed to mass produce the device.
Foldable or bendable smartphones is not a new concept. The idea has been floated around for years. In fact, Samsung released a prototype of a foldable smartphone with touch AMOLED display back in 2011. The said prototype was not much of pretty sight but it was promising. It held together even after 100,000 folds. The part where the folding took place lost only six percent of its brightness after that many folds.
Late last year, the company also filed a patent with the Korean Intellectual Property Office for a flip phone that "can be folded or unfolded semi-automatically". The device, as illustrated in the patent, was long and narrow with a "flexible seam in the middle". The device can supposedly fold by itself.
The Samsung Galaxy X is aiming to follow the successful launch of the Galaxy S8 launch when it is unveiled in Q3 of 2017, as some rumors have said. Another eagerly-awaited Samsung device, the Galaxy Note 8, will be unveiled in Q4 also of this year.
