Samsung is working on a follow up to last year's Galaxy Fold (opens in new tab) that's expected to launch this August (opens in new tab), and while the Korean manufacturer was almost certainly going to shake things up with the design, given the issues (opens in new tab) it had with its first attempt at the Fold (opens in new tab), the latest leak suggests quite the turnaround.
A new collection of renders have surfaced, reportedly based on a patent filed by Samsung this week that seems to incorporate elements from the Galaxy Z Flip (opens in new tab) - which was blissfully unencumbered by any of the problems we saw with the Fold - and the Galaxy S20 Ultra (opens in new tab). It's certainly a very different aesthetic, but with two foldable smartphones under its belt already, the company may have decided that an inner screen is the winning design.
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The renders were mocked up by @xleaks7 and Pigtou (opens in new tab), and show off a long, thin display embedded in the outer shell, much like the Flip, that could have similar functionality - displaying notifications and allowing users to accept or reject incoming calls.
The patent (opens in new tab) suggest it's not just the design that will be aping the Flip, with the Fold 2's improved hinge mechanism allowing it to fold flush. That wasn't the case with the original Fold and was one of the causes of its many problems.
The inner screen appears to be sporting a notch, which is contrary to another rumour going around that alluded to a hole-punch camera and smaller bezels.
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Pigtou has spotted what looks to be an alert slider - similar to the one found on OnePlus smartphones (opens in new tab) - which would make a welcome addition to the handset, allowing users to switch between preset profiles including Ring, Vibrate, and Silent without having to access any menus on their phones. If that's what it is, we assume it'll have similar functionality.
A slightly less exciting feature is the lack of cameras, which seems a bit jarring given Samsung's recent offerings, but the foldable range is courting a different consumer, who's less concerned about snapping pics, and more concerned with having a snazzy phone that folds in half.
As TechRadar (opens in new tab) points out, it's possible that this particular patent is for the Galaxy Fold Lite (aka the Galaxy Fold Special Edition), which is rumoured for a July launch and will be sporting a smaller price tag than its 2019 counterpart.
Either way, the design looks far less prone to niggles than the original Fold, and we love the Flip vibes. If it's the cheaper Fold, there's not long to wait for more news, as we head towards the end of June.
