Phones That Unfold Like Maps to Become Tablets Are Coming

And yet we can't have headphone jacks.

January 13, 2017 9:00 am

Maps are valuable tools. But they’re also huge. So, at some point in the evolution of cartography, some genius came along and said, “Here’s an idea: let’s fold the map up so you can put it in your pocket.”

The idea stuck. And if news reports are true, someone now wants to apply it to tablets.

Those reports, courtesy of The Korean Herald, indicate both LG and Samsung (who we thought might be planning a move like this) will be selling foldable phones by the end of the year. A source told the paper that “Samsung is expected to roll out more than 100,000 units of fold-out devices in the third quarter” and LG will follow with 100,000 devices of its own in Q4.

While it’s unclear exactly what shape the LG models will take and what functions they’ll provide, the Samsung models are expected to be smartphones that can unfold into seven-inch tablets. Although the publication cautions the rollout of the foldable phones (heh) could be delayed due to Samsung’s alleged involvement in a corruption scandal, we’re still going to hope for the best.

While we wait, we’ll just content ourselves with folding pizza slices, origami and HD TVs.

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