Huawei's three-fold mobile phone is about to be released, and the folding screen technology war enters the second half

Earlier, a photo of Huawei Managing Director Yu Chengdong holding a new folding screen phone while on a flight was circulated on social media. According to the poster, what he was holding was Huawei’s first tri-fold folding screen phone to be released soon. . At the delivery ceremony for the first batch of Xiangjie S9 owners, Yu Chengdong responded positively to the release time of this new phone, confirming that it will be officially unveiled in September this year.

(Source: Weibo)

In fact, this is not the first time Huawei has been rumored to launch a tri-fold foldable screen phone. As early as the middle of last year, some media broke the news that Huawei was targeting the entire Hongmeng ecosystem to create a new device with multiple forms and multiple interactive designs. Now it seems that the "mysterious terminal" originally rumored may be this tri-fold folding screen phone.

(Source: Weibo)

In addition to Huawei, in an interview after the new product launch conference held by Honor on July 12, Honor Terminal CEO Zhao Ming answered questions about Honor. There are rumors about whether a tri-fold foldable screen phone will be launched. He said that Honor's technology is now fully qualified to launch such devices. As for whether it will be officially launched, it is actually more of a business decision.

It is not difficult to see that the current first-line folding screen mobile phone manufacturers are technically fully equipped to launch more forms of folding screen products, and whether consumers can accept it is the key factor. For Huawei, being the first to launch a tri-fold folding screen mobile phone is not only to "show off muscles", but also to provide hardware support for the arrival of Hongmeng NEXT.

Tri-fold folding screen, a real Pad phone 2-in-1?

Since the birth of foldable screen mobile phones, their form and practical value have been controversial. Some consumers believe that foldable screen mobile phones are often accompanied by characteristics such as "undurable" and "thick", making it difficult to find a balance between mobile phones and tablets.

However, first-line folding screen mobile phone brands represented by Huawei and Honor have been continuously increasing the durability of folding screen mobile phones in the past few years, reducing the weight and thickness of the entire machine, making it easier to carry with ordinary candy bar mobile phones The experience is no different. For example, Honor's newly released Magic V3 folding screen mobile phone is already 9.2mm thick, which is even thinner and lighter than its imaging flagship.

After solving the durability and thickness issues of folding screens, more foldable devices will have a solid technical foundation.

Judging from the Reuters picture, Huawei’s first tri-fold folding screen mobile phone uses a “Z”-shaped folding solution, which is an inner folding + outer folding + double hinge structure. Yu Chengdong is in an unfolded state when used hand-held, and you can clearly see a thick bump on the right side of the fuselage, which is most likely a protective cover for the stylus.

(Source: Weibo)

It was previously revealed that Huawei’s tri-fold folding screen phone is expected to have a screen size of about 10 inches in the unfolded state, while in the folded state The external screen size is about 6-7 inches, and the screen ratio will remain similar to the Mate X5 external screen.

The biggest significance of Huawei making a tri-fold foldable screen phone is not to "create demand" as we imagined, but that one of the features of the public version of Hongmeng NEXT is the unification of the multi-platform ecosystem. As we all know, current mobile phones, tablets and other devices equipped with HarmonyOS have unique advantages, such as the unique handwriting experience and multi-screen collaboration experience of Huawei tablets. The tri-fold folding screen utilizes the characteristics of two folds, which can well combine the advantages of mobile phones and tablets. Combined with the powerful system capabilities of Hongmeng NEXT, it allows users to complete multiple tasks with a single device.

According to Weibo's @bad review emperor, Huawei's tri-fold folding screen phone may also support Hongmeng PC-level applications, which may be the biggest "killer" of this folding screen phone.

(Source: Weibo)

The price of the first tri-fold folding screen phone is also a bit high, it is expected to be between 15,000 and 20,000, and the early stocking is not It would be too much. It seems that after the release of this Huawei mobile phone, there will be another "rush buying wave".

The folding screen mobile phone technology war has entered the second half

Since 2019, folding screen mobile phones have gradually become a battleground for various mobile phone brands. So far, Samsung, Huawei, Honor, Xiaomi, Mainstream mobile phone brands such as vivo, OPPO and Motorola have all launched folding screen mobile phones. Among them, Samsung, Huawei and Honor have topped the list at different times/regions and become the leaders of folding screen mobile phone brands.

Samsung, a large and powerful company, has successively laid out various forms of folding screen equipment solutions as early as two years ago. For example, at the 2024 MWC exhibition, Samsung Display exhibited tri-fold folding screens, folding scroll screens, and vertical Z-shaped folding screens. and other options. However, no clear consumer-grade product information has been leaked among the several solutions displayed by Samsung. This also makes people very curious about how panel manufacturers will create different forms of folding screen devices.

(Source: Samsung)

When talking about technological breakthroughs, the problems facing folding screen mobile phone manufacturers are particularly prominent.

The first is the choice of panel. Currently, folding screen mobile phone panels are divided into two materials: UTG and CPI. We can simply understand that UTG is glass and CPI is plastic film. There are actually no strict requirements for the selection of panel materials for single folding screen mobile phones. After all, whether it is UTG or CPI, their respective advantages are quite obvious.

For example, the characteristics of CPI are softness, good folding radius, and scattered crease distribution. On this basis, deep optimization can be carried out to obtain a visually flatter inner screen performance. The best among them are Huawei and Honor.

But the problem with the CPI solution is that the scratch resistance is weaker than that of UTG, which may not be obvious during a single folding. But for a three-fold folding screen solution with direct screen-to-screen contact, UTG may be the only solution. is a better choice. It is understood that Huawei’s tri-fold folding screen will be equipped with UTG glass from Shengkai Technology for the first time to increase the protective performance of the screen.

Secondly, the hinge of the tri-fold folding screen phone is also a part that needs attention. A single folding device only needs to be equipped with one hinge. Even if there is only one mechanical and physical mechanism with a high risk of loss, it is already the key to frequent accidents. The tri-fold folding screen requires a double hinge structure, which undoubtedly increases the risk of damage.

(Photo source: mashable)

Huawei and Honor are both brands with relatively solid hinge technology for folding screen mobile phones. The former has exclusive dual-rotation water drop hinge technology, while the latter has the latest Magic technology. The V3 has been upgraded to a titanium hinge. One is designed to be seamless and the other is stable and durable. Regardless of orientation, this is a natural advantage for devices that need to be folded multiple times.

The last thing is the software adaptation problem. It has been previously reported that the biggest obstacle in the early development of Huawei's tri-fold folding screen is the adaptation of application display ratios, such as a 10-inch unfolded state and a 7-inch closed state. How to adjust the two different application ratios is a great test for manufacturers. of skills.

In any case, from hardware to software, the development of tri-fold folding screen mobile phones is more difficult than that of ordinary folding screens. This is why the upstream supply chain has already publicly demonstrated multi-form folding solutions, but There are few reports of in-depth development by mobile phone brands. Huawei's tri-fold folding screen has been confirmed to be released in September, and Honor and Samsung also have complete underlying technical support. This may also be an opportunity to widen the gap between folding screen mobile phone brands, just like the "big reshuffle" in the smartphone market After that, only six mainstream manufacturers remained.

30% off detonates the market and adds another fire to foldable screen phones?

Since its birth, foldable screen mobile phones have shouldered a mission, to provide a large screen while being portable enough to bring a better experience in audio-visual entertainment, business office, image editing and other tasks. Different from the traditional single folding design, the three-folding design can achieve more complex shape changes, providing a larger screen while still maintaining a more portable form.

According to a report by market research firm IDC, global foldable screen mobile phone shipments will be approximately 18 million units in 2023, a year-on-year increase of more than 50%. The market share of foldable screen mobile phones will grow from less than 1% in 2022 to more than 1.5% in 2023. Although the overall share is still small, the growth rate far exceeds the traditional smartphone market. In the period of rapid development of the folding screen mobile phone market, the arrival of tri-fold folding screens may completely change the situation.

(Source: Huawei)

On the one hand, it reflects the technical barriers between brands. Market research organization IDC pointed out that manufacturers with independent research and development capabilities and strong supply chain control will In this technology competition, manufacturers that lack core technologies such as screen panels, hinges, thin and light batteries, or are overly dependent on external supplies may face greater challenges.

On the other hand, it is the establishment of brand image. The high pricing will make the 3-fold design a luxury product for a few people, but it also establishes a new high-end image for the brand, which helps the brand maintain its differentiation in the fierce market competition. change. To give a simple example, before the launch of folding screen mobile phones, the super-8K price market was almost monopolized by Huawei, Samsung and Apple. The arrival of folding screen mobile phones has enabled most mobile phone manufacturers to reach higher prices for the first time. The brand's journey upmarket has helped.

However, objectively speaking, tri-fold screen mobile phones are still very novel and niche products. Even if they are backed by powerful brands like Huawei and Honor, it will be difficult to attract the attention of mass consumers in the early stage. . But in the long run, multi-form foldable devices will definitely be the future trend. After all, richer and more diverse user experiences are what most consumers are pursuing.

Then the question is, will you choose to support Huawei’s tri-fold folding screen phone priced at nearly 20,000 yuan?

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