Previously on Lemmy:
Past Discussions:
Well, as promised, we are talking foldable this week. The excitement is palpable, and it looks like the rest of our mod team have already started the conversation here. Go check it out.
I honestly don’t know very much about foldable phones, so I’ll let the rest of our (very smart and knowledgeable) mod team handle this one this week. :)
Last thing for future reference at the end of the week, we also have a great thread discussing foldables here too, go check it out if you want more great discussions.
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I tried the Pixel Fold because I’ve been using their phones since the Nexus days. I went into it very skeptically… Meaning I made sure I was thoroughly aware of the return policy.
I’m sold. Weight doesn’t bother me and the benefits of being able to swap into a screen with that much real estate for viewing, multitasking, playing games, etc far outweigh a little thickness and weight. It fits in my pocket way better than I imagined and the front screen is actually more functionally sized that my 7 Pro’s due to how damned tall it is! If you’re not hard on your phones (I don’t imagine it takes a beating as well as a regular phone) then I suggest you give it a shot. I’m definitely never going back.
I might buy a flip foldable in the future (so either the Samsung flip or the Motorola RAZR) because I like the idea of using my phone less if I can do at least some things on the outside screen + I like the idea of propping the phone up on itself for videos and photos. I really don’t need a book type foldable, but the clamshell just has something to it… In the future.
I think they are the obvious next step for mobile phones. But we are not there yet, where I would pull the trigger and buy one for me. I think they are too flimsy right now
Why would they be next steps ?
I think the trend is getting bigger screens but then having a big ass phone is annoying, so imo foldable phones is the obvious next step
Why would bigger hardware be the next step. Isn’t that kinda dumb ?
Next step are wearables.
Next logical step is a bigger viewing platform. Screens are dumb, but we need to see information, so really smart glasses or projectiors should be next step
I agree with you. Maybe I meant the next doable step. I think we are too far from smart glasses that can replace phones. Specially at low cost
I disagree. 350 xreal are pretty good.
It’s just mirroring your screen. Yeah it’s not going to be as good as native and nothing compared to apple. It’s the next steps which I think should be modular.
Wearables.
Glasses, hearable. Which is just a hearing aid but better and smart watch wrist band. With the phone tying everything together.
Obviously will near near perfect latency and much more powerful batteries. Plus some kind of wireless charging for all devices.
Screen should obviously be on glasses. Just makes sense. Only need a viewing platform don’t need anything else from it. Leave grunt in phone or computer box. It streams to watch glasses wrists and hearable.
Wrist can show small information, maybe reply to easy message and give notifications. Hearable is music and audio playback. And anything you need to view is from glasses
I wouldn’t change a phone for glasses, but maybe I am a minority
Why ? Is not really the phone change though. It’s just the way you view content. From laptops to phones to whatever is next. We view data so going straight to eyes would cut out middle man
Technically, all phones are foldable.
And blendable.
Personally I find the current range of phone options simply too huge. Having owned a Sony Z3 Compact followed by the XZ1 Compact, I didn’t have many choices. I ended up with the Asus Zenfone 8.
I really like the formfactor of the Oppo find N where in it’s folded form it’s a really usable size and I can unfold it if I need a bigger screen. I don’t mind the Samsung Flips or the Motorola Razrs but I think the outside screen can be bigger. There’s a market for the Samsung Folds but it’s not for me.
Tl;dr - my idea of a foldable should be a good sized phone which folds down to something very compact and pocketable.
I use a Fold 4. I am autistic.
I went into it assuming I would hate the crease. But decided the upsides outweighed that potential downside. But over a year in now and I don’t even hate the crease. Honestly the thing I find the most annoying would also be on most other phones; Fold 4 has an underscreen camera with lower pixel density in front of it. Bothers the shit out of me. I’ve taken to having a floating button for screenshots/video and place that button directly over the camera circle. So instead of whatever is in my game looking stupid and annoying in that spot, I can just pretend the icon for the camera button has a weird design.
The upside for me is having access to a nearly 4:3 aspect ratio. I do alot of emulation of older games, so it’s nice to have them be full screen again. Also the charging speed is pretty nice, can have the phone completely full from empty in just under an hour at max charging speed. Which means the 25% to 75% time is just nuts. Can plug it in and not get bored just from watching the percentage tick up. Lol.
I don’t really have much use for it in folded bar form though, using it like an actual phone is of course better in that shape, but I didn’t buy this phone because of how often I make or receive traditional phone calls. So it’s mostly just a fast, useful tablet that I can fold up and put in my pocket. Honestly if there was a version without the outside screen, I would probably get that one. The only thing I use the outside screen for is to hang up at the end of a call. And I’m sure there is an alternate option for that. Could just have a tiny little info screen that had hang-up and speaker buttons. But yeah, if the outside screen isn’t costing much to include, then whatever, I could take it or leave it.
I have the hand strap case directly from Samsung, I definitely recommend it. It’s got adhesive strips that stick to the phone, designed to be put on once and never removed. It doesn’t need to be cleaned under. Basically as minimal as possible while having the grip to the phone necessary to trust that strap with your $2000 phones life. Although I didn’t quite pay that much, I always look for an open box deal. I got it 40% off.
But yeah, the crease isn’t really annoying at all. At it’s worst, when looking at the phone from an uncentered angle, it is visibly darker along each side of the crease, but looking at it straight on, which you generally would be doing, you can’t even tell it’s there. You have to touch it to notice it, but it’s smooth enough that it doesn’t affect playing games or anything.
I was worried it was gonna be much worse when thinking about it before I got hands on. So when my sister got a used fold 3, I borrowed it for a couple hours to play some specific games I wanted to try out. And I wasn’t worried anymore about spending so much for a fold 4.
The weight was an issue originally, took about 2 weeks to get used to it, and then about a month later I got the strap case and it would have solved it anyway. It’s lighter than a hand-held gaming console, and I’m sure a few of us used to hold those for hours when we weren’t as strong as we are now. The original issue was mostly when trying to hold it one-handed from one side of it. Or gripping accross the phone in folded out mode. I have decently big hands, smaller hands would have made it more than a 2 week issue. But yeah, if my hands were smaller, the problem would have remained until I got the strap case, then you hold the phone from it’s center of weight and your hand is in a comfortable position while doing so. Or I just tuck one finger tip into the strap and two more on the outside of the strap and hold the phone from one side still. Comfortable and distributing the phones weight more evenly.
I am completely apathetic about them. I think they’re boring.
They’re boring in the US because basically all you have is the Samsung fold and flip. and they haven’t really changed since the fold 2 and flip respectively.
Although the pixel fold coming to the US (it may actually already be on) and that looks like an interesting device
I’m not American
Had a Z Fold 4 for a couple of months now and i dont ever want to go back. It feels great in the hand when closed and it is awesome to have a much larger screen available at any time. Crease isnt very noticable on it
Had one since launch, first foldable. Zero issues with the interior screen/crease. People need to remember you’ll hear about the issues, you won’t hear about people just enjoying their device normally.
I disagree with people who say the inside screen is useless. For one, I use it to share pics with family because it’s easier for multiple people to view. I also use it for watching videos, it’s quite nice.
I am also a remote sys admin. I use the inside screen for RDP/ssh sessions to remote machines for quick weekend maintenance. I will never go back.
My husband has a zfold. Same feedback after a few months, but recently the screen has finally started having issues at the crease. He’s extremely careful with it, so this is definitely a phone thing and not just a use thing.
It’s probably something he’s already checked, but the screen protector ends up coming off inside the crease after a while. Have had to replace mine and my wife’s twice so far, but it’s an easy fix.
Oh good to know. There’s truly no telling if he checked that, so I will :p
Not interested in expensive gimmicks. How does it improve the experience? Now a phone that is a snap bracelet. Lives on my wrist. Sign me up.
Just make a snappable smartwatch band.
No. That’s not what I want nor need.
How does it improve the experience
On a Pixel Fold,
- I can browse two social media apps.
- I can play two idle games.
- I can play a game and watch a stream.
- I can play one game or use one app with a large screen.
I actually use the inside screen much more than I thought I would. Is it worth it? Probably not, but goddamn is it fun.
You can use a laptop or a tablet. A big phone doesn’t bring anything new to the table. It’s just a sub category. Most people don’t need a tablet a laptop a phone and a large phone. Some might get something from it.
Only situation I’d see would be watching on a larger screen and maybe gaming. However I’d never need that as I have a tv. So why would I use a small screen? I’m sure it’s fun but I can never see it as something worth dropping 2k on.
Gaming laptop or a TV for gaming on. I wouldn’t play on my phone as it’s just a massive downgrade. But each to their own. Now a screen projected on my glasses. Sure.
Why would you ever play two idle games ? Sounds like an awful thing to do.
All valid points (especially about the idle games, I probably need psychological help, lmao), except that I can now do all of those things with a single device that fits in my pocket. Of course I’d prefer to play games on a monitor or TV, but I don’t have those on the go. Except maybe a laptop, but that’s much less portable than a phone.
It’s not for everybody, that’s definitely true. But it works for me, much to my surprise.
They have much larger screens. I’m vision impaired, so any chance I get a larger screen I’ll take it.
that exists a laptop or tablet why make a huge phone
These are all different options on the sliding scale of portability vs usability/screen size. Folding phones lie between a slab phone and tablets on this scale. I’d say slab phones > folding phones > tablets > laptops > desktops etc… You also of course have further subdivisions such as the iPad mini vs the iPad.
This is like the people saying, at the launch of the iPad, that tablets would fail because laptops exist.
Yup. I get that. Always a niche and people buy unnecessary products. I still don’t get tablets at all. Wouldn’t buy one. See no reason for their continued existence. I’m wrong. Like most things people baffle me.
Tablet is a larger screen. That’s it. It’s an inferior laptop and inferior phone. Only use I could think of would again be game or watch films. However once again a tv fulfils that role by a country mile.
Only reason would be as you said portability, however in that sense I’d expect most adults would require a laptop for work and so would be able to dual purpose that.
If you didn’t have a laptop and had to travel frequently then tablet would be a cheaper alternative.
I have not personally used a phone with a folding screen, but I work in customer service and I know our tech team has replaced a lot of them where the screen gets a crease in the middle or comes unlamented.
Honestly though the foldables seem kind of pointless to me. It gives a slightly larger screen that’s really of no use unless your phone is the only thing you use to watch movies/game on. It’s really more of a status symbol than anything else.
I’m sure someone will eventually come up with a more useful and innovative way of using foldable screen technology, but this is not it.
I really like the idea of of a flip smartphone, but I’m too careless with my phone to have a plastic screen instead of a glass one
Just another possible point of failure with no real upside, beside the ability to slam it shut while on a call when angry like it is 2005 again.
Cosmetically the screen creases would anoy me.
Only use case I see valuable would be easier portability of larger screen formats. But I really never use a tablet to begin with.
I’m sure the tech will go towards better curved displays like monitors,tvs, and VR headset optics. Which are some things i maybe interested in using.
But at this point I feel it’s more gimmick than anything.
I am really interested in getting one, but I’m planning to hold off until the cameras improve and reach flagship levels. Right now, that’s the only drawback, and the price of course.
Just remembered one cool thing about the Nintendo DS. Thanks to its dual screens and the stylus there were lots of “games” that made it serve as an electronic Japanese dictionary and Kanji learning tool and many Japanese learners used it for that exact purpose (I bought mine just for Kirby Canvas Curse though 🙃):
There were also lots of games exploiting that setting and they offered unique gameplays that you couldn’t find on other hardware.
What would be really cool is if we had a similar software offering on Android that exploits the foldable nature of those phones in a similar way to the Nintendo DS, that would definitely win me over.
But, what would you need a foldable phone for that purpouse? You can do the same with a regular phone in portrait mode.
I’d say for the same reason you’d prefer a writing tablet on your lap or on your desk while the screen is in front of you, and it’d feel more like an electronic dictionary:
I think it’s one of the dumbest new “features” I’ve seen on a phone since… I actually can’t remember anything worse right now.
Notch?
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I can’t remember the last time I had that specific use-case though. So maybe it is great for that, and for you, but editing photos on the go is not worth another $1000 on top of the $1000 I spend on a non-folding phone.
Maybe not worth it for you, and that’s fine!
