It has been known that Samsung has its eye set on a foldable smartphone because of a concept video released in 2014. Now, the United States Patent and Trademark Office has posted a new patent of the South Korean tech company for the flexible design.
If this materializes, Samsung will roll out a tablet that could turn into a smartphone and vice versa in a snap — or rather, a fold. Dubbed Project Valley, the model reportedly bears the codename SM-G929F, which is right next to the SM-G928F of the Galaxy edge+.
Titled "Foldable Device and Method of Controlling the Same," the patent shows the basic idea of the project: how the screens will function and how it will roughly look like. Based on the diagrams, it can be set in an open state to work like a tablet and a folded state to work like a smartphone. This essentially makes it a convenient two-in-one gadget.
Although the plans leave little to the imagination, it clearly illustrates what Samsung has in mind, not to mention the concept video demonstrates how it'll probably turn out to be.
Also, it remains a mystery whether the screens will fold outward with the backs touching each other or fold inward with the screens touching each other, which could mean there's a third display.
On an interesting note, some of the sketches ironically show an iPod icon, as Samsung and Apple aren't exactly on the chummiest of terms, but the two do maintain a pretty professional relationship. However, when it comes to protecting their patents, the gloves of both companies come off.
The Project Valley device is believed to hit the shelves in South Korea, the United Kingdom, Germany, Italy, France, Poland and markets in the Nordic region. There is no sight yet of a U.S. release.
According to SamMobile, Samsung could launch folding devices by 2016, but there's no official release date of such a gadget yet.
