Samsung has three foldables on the market right now – the Galaxy Z Fold 2, Galaxy Z Flip, and the Galaxy Fold which was its first foray into the category and got off to a rocky start.
The phones aren't cheap by any means, and we've yet to see alternative options on offer, like the company has previously provided with its 'Lite' smartphones. With the S series, for example, we've had the Galaxy S20, S20 Plus, and S20 Ultra, as well as the newly-released S20 FE Edition.
But now it looks like Samsung has been beavering away on a more affordable foldable, which we could see launch as the Galaxy Z Fold 2 Lite.
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LetsGoDigital spotted a patent for three new foldable designs that have one cost-saving feature in common: each device features a cutaway in the frame that allows the rear camera (in the unfolded configuration) to act as an additional front-facing camera when the handset is folded.
Interestingly, only one of the three echoes the design of the current Galaxy Z Fold 2, which has an outer display panel, and unfolds to reveal a larger, inner display.
The other two resemble the Huawei Mate X and Mate Xs, in that they unfold outwards, with the screen on the outside of the device.
The first two options offer two different sized cutaways, with the larger of the two allowing for more sensors, and presumably a higher quality camera.
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The patent was filed back in April, and made available just last week. Given the premium status the Z Fold series has acquired, we can't imagine Samsung sacrificing screen real estate for a cost-saving camera configuration, so as nifty as the design is, it's likely this is for a variant of the smartphone that could be launched with a lower price tag.
Of course, as with most patents, its existence isn't concrete confirmation that we'll ever see the smartphone come to fruition, but if Samsung is looking at offering cheaper versions of its Fold, it does lend more weight to the theory that foldables will replace the S and Note series as its new flagship.
Don't forget to bookmark T3's Black Friday deals page if you want to snap up a Samsung foldable of your own for as cheap as possible!
Source: LetsGoDigital
