Nintendo officially announced today that it will host a closed beta Mario Kart Tour test for Android devices from May 22 to June 4 in the United States and Japan. “The closed beta test is a test of an application under development and is held for customers in order to improve the quality of the game. Furthermore, the number of customers who may participate in this test is limited. If the number of applications exceeds the number of possible participants, we will randomly select the participants,” said Nintendo. Read more for a video, a link to the beta signup and additional information.
One Weibo user has managed to get their hands on a Samsung Galaxy Fold pre-production unit and disassembled it to see what’s really inside this folding smartphone. As you might’ve guessed, the inside is quite complex to say the least, with many parts crammed together in a manner that would make it very difficult to repair / replace, or at least by yourself. The hinge features three-point reinforcement and two ribbon cables that connect the phone’s two batteries as well as sending power to the secondary 4.6-inch display. Read more for additional pictures and information.
Photo credit: Lets Go Digital
Apple’s rumored to be working on a folding iPhone set for release some time next year, but Russia-based Caviar wanted to give fans some type of idea what a luxury version of that device could look like. Introducing the tri-fold iPhone Z, complete with five different modes: Selfie, Tablet, Laptop, Screen, and Telephone mode. When folded, users can make calls on the 6.6-inch (20: 9 aspect ratio) display, but when opened, a 10.4-inch (3:2 aspect ratio) screen is revealed. Other features include a dual front camera setup with a Face ID dot projector and a rear triple camera system, along with an in-display Touch ID sensor. Read more for a video, additional pictures and information.
Photo credit: Steve Kovach / Des
Before pre-ordering a Samsung Galaxy Fold, you might want to check out a few pictures and videos of people who accidentally removed a protective layer on the main display that is required for proper function. At first glance, this may appear to be a screen protector of sorts, but as many early reviewers found out, it’s actually some type of protective layer that keeps the folding display functional. Read more for additional videos and pictures.
Photo credit: Lets Go Digital
Sharp demonstrated one of its new smartphone prototypes that has a vertically-folding display, which means its 6.18-inch AMOLED display can be folded down to make it pocket-sized. The display itself is WQHD+ 1,440×3,040-pixel resolution, and Sharp claims that the screen can withstand being folded more than 300,000 times before wearing out. Unfortunately, no other specifications, pricing or a release date was revealed. Read more for the patent, additional pictures and a video of it in-action.
Photo credit: Lets Go Digital
LG Electronics published a USPTO (United States Patent and Trademark Office) patent on April 9, 2019, with the title ‘Mobile Terminal’. This device appears to be a foldable smartphone that sports a flexible transparent display. It appears to be all-screen, as the flexible display can be used on both the front / back and the inside, while a simple movement turns it into a tablet. The phone also features a near bezel-less design that may use a different transparent material. Read more for additional pictures and information.
Imgur’s “darkshark” managed to fool the Samsung Galaxy S10’s ultrasonic fingerprint sensor using just a 3D-printer. Tha’s right, he captured his fingerprint on a wineglass, used Photoshop to clean it up, and then created a model using 3DS Max that was used to extrude the lines in the picture into a 3D version. In the end, it took 13-minutes to print a version of his fingerprint that managed to unlock the smartphone. Read more for a video, additional pictures and information.
Photo credit: Lets Go Digital
Lenovo registered a patent back in September with the Global Design Database of the WIPO (World Intellectual Property Office) that consists of 11 sketches of a foldable smartphone with a flexible hinge. When unfolded, the elongated, near bezel-less screen can be used as normal, and there’s a in the upper middle area. Unlike other folding devices, this one has a second rear display when can be used when the device is folded up. Read more for the patent filing, additional pictures and information.
HMD Global has just launched the Nokia X71 in Taiwan, and it packs plenty of performance at an affordable price. Featuring a 6.39-inch FHD+ resolution LCD display (19.3:9 aspect ratio), Snapdragon 660 processor, 6GB of RAM, 128GB of expandable storage, 3,500mAh battery, a headphone jack, and a triple-camera system on the rear with Sony Zeiss-certified lenses. Read more for a hands-on video and additional information.
Photo credit: Lets Go Digital
Samsung may have a dual-folding Galaxy smartphone in the works, as revealed by their patent filing, and it’s quite similar to the Xiaomi model that was shown earlier this year. Featuring a large flexible screen that can fold twice, as in once expanded, there’s a tablet-sized display, but when folded, the screen remains on the outside. You basically curl the screen around the housing, so that the entire device consists of a display, both the front and rear. Read more for additional pictures and information.