The upcoming Galaxy Z Fold 5 from Samsung is rumored to feature a new “droplet” hinge design, which the company internally refers to as a “dumbbell” hinge, according to industry tipster Ice Universe. The latest technology being employed in the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 5 is expected to remove crease from the main display.
Throughout the development of its flagship foldable device, Samsung has maintained a similar hinge design, resulting in a visible crease on the inner display in its previous four generations. Currently, there are two main designs for foldable devices when it comes to the hinge, Samsung’s design is one of them.
Galaxy Z Fold 5 ‘droplet’ style hinge
Samsung’s approach involves curving the display and its ultra-thin glass, which results in a noticeable crease on the inner display, as well as the body of the phone being at a slight angle when closed. This design is used across both the Samsung Fold and Flip models.
Several other smartphone manufacturers, such as OPPO, Motorola, and others, have adopted the “waterdrop” hinge design for their foldable smartphones, which allows the display to flex slightly into the hinge space, resulting in a smaller radius and less of a crease.
The Galaxy Z Fold 5 from Samsung may also adopt a similar design, known as the “droplet” style, to improve the hinge. This would not be the first time Samsung has updated its hinge design, as the Galaxy Z Fold 2 and 4 have both had new hinge designs employed.
The crease on the main display has been a persistent issue for the Galaxy Z Fold and Flip series, as it is visible and can be felt when using the main display, particularly when watching videos or other content. Although the Galaxy Z Fold4 has made improvements in minimizing the crease compared to previous models, it still cannot match the performance of devices like the OPPO Find N and OPPO Find N2 in this regard.
It is not entirely clear why Samsung has taken so long to adopt the “droplet” or “waterdrop” hinge design. It has been speculated that water resistance was a key reason, but it seems that Samsung has overcome this challenge and the Galaxy Z Fold 5 will retain its water resistance even with the new hinge design.
The phone is rumoured to feature a 108MP camera, accompanied by a 12MP ultra-wide camera and a 64MP telephoto camera with 2x optical zoom.
However, it’s worth noting that the Galaxy Z Fold 5 is expected to debut in the second half of the year. Currently, the company is heading towards the launch of the Galaxy S23 series on February 1st at the Unpacked event.