All reports from MWC 2024 in Barcelona
I just used the newest flip phones from Motorolaand it may be one of the most impressive (and confusing) projects I’ve ever come across.
Last October, Motorola unveiled its device with an “adaptive display concept”“, posting photos of a truly wild phone that can be folded into different positions, including the ability to wrap around your wrist and turn into a giant smartwatch. After seeing the photos online, I was impressed but also a little skeptical. It looked like every other foldable phone I’ve ever seen, so did Motorola really pull it off? Or were they just attractive images on the Internet?
After playing with a wild fold in MMC 2024I can confirm that it is real, that it actually wraps around your wrist, and that it is truly a great technological achievement.
How does Motorola’s concept phone work?
When lying down, Motorola’s Adaptive Display concept looks the same as any other Android phone… mostly. It is equipped with a 6.9-inch Full HD+ OLED panel, which, although plastic, looks pretty decent. Colors looked good, everything was reasonably sharp, etc. You can use this screen like any other Android phone and won’t notice any difference.
That is until you look at the back of the concept phone. The back of the concept device is made of orange fabric with clearly visible ribs all over the surface. It looks different, feels different, and that’s the first sign that this is a completely different type of smartphone.
You can fold the phone in different ways, such as turning it into a small tent or simply folding the bottom of the screen as a makeshift stand. Both serve the same purpose: placing the phone on a flat surface and displaying its screen. As a small desktop companion to help you keep track of your YouTube videos, calendar, etc., it can be useful in many situations.
Motorola could have stopped there and had an interesting idea at its disposal, but it decided to go even further, namely by moving from your hands to your wrists.
What is it like to wear a phone on your wrist?
The biggest feature of Motorola’s concept phone is that it can be worn on your wrist like a smartwatch. However, it’s a little more complicated than just putting the phone on your wrist and calling it a day. First you need to put on a metal bracelet with a magnetic center. Then align one of the two magnetic strips on the back of the phone and once connected, wraps around your wrist. This is a more complex process than I originally thought.
You are ready to go once your phone is properly attached to the bracelet. You can walk around with it on your wrist, move your hands up and down, twist them, whatever. Even with good movement, the phone stays surprisingly well on the strap.
However, this is only true if Really you will ensure that the magnets are aligned correctly. If you don’t, the phone will fall over if you move your hands, which is what happened with one of the demo devices I saw. What’s impressive is that the phone was perfectly fine and continued to work even after being dropped.
When you wear a Motorola phone on your wrist, the portion of the screen at the top of your wrist effectively becomes the screen protector of the Motorola Razr Plus. You can see the time using the clock widget, check the weather, view your calendar, call your favorite contacts, etc. You can even launch full apps if you want. It has a 4.6-inch screen for smartwatch mode, so whether you just want to check the time or watch a YouTube video, Motorola’s concept phone has you covered.
Is this the future of foldable phones?
This all sounds great, right? But here’s the important question: is this Motorola’s vision the future of foldable phones? Is this the phone I want to use every day? This is where things get complicated.
It’s impressive how foldable the phone is, but Really When I folded the phone, I could feel the different hinges moving. During the demo, I worked fine the entire time, but the feeling of the loops going through the wrong side of the fabric was a little disturbing.
There’s also the fact that the Motorola phone big when you use it as a smart watch. The idea of having a full-fledged Android phone on your wrist is cool, but it looks pretty unsightly. There’s also a bracelet that, while essential, doesn’t look like something I’d want to wear all day.
But despite these complaints and concerns, I like that it exists. Looking at today’s smartphone market, it’s easy to argue that cell phones are “boring.” This may be true for some devices, but it’s clear that companies like Motorola are still doing incredibly interesting things.
I don’t think this is the next big form factor for foldable phones, and I wouldn’t be surprised if Motorola doesn’t move forward with this concept device and turn it into a retail product. However, I’m glad Motorola is thinking of new ways to use foldable phones. It may not be the next big thing, but I’m sure the people at the company have many other ideas about what their next concept phone will look like. And I can’t wait to see what it will be.
Originally posted by Joe Maring
Source: Digital Trends
