Over the years we have witnessed several revolutionary foldable smartphones. While the early concepts of these smartphones were not very practical, since the technology was not revolutionised enough. Now, cut to 2024, the foldable market is filled with innovative smartphones with several global brands joining the race.

Owning a foldable smartphone is preferably a lifestyle choice since the devices are quite expensive in comparison to normal smartphones. While foldable smartphones faced immense backlash due to battery life, performance, durability, and other concerns, brands over the years have managed to solve the key improvement areas. Now, we have competitive smartphones like Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 6, Google Pixel 9 Pro Fold, OnePlus Open, Vivo X Fold 3 Pro, and many more.

Now in 2024, we are entering a new era of foldables with Huawei launching its first tri-fold smartphone on September 10. Will this new smartphone market become another lifestyle trend or will it just be another tablet-like smartphone? Let’s have a look at what the future of tri-fold smartphones looks like.

What are tri-fold smartphones?

Currently, we have two types of foldable smartphones, one is a clamshell fold and another i the book-style fold. Both of these foldables require two separate displays and one hinge to support the folding functionalities. Now, with tri-fold devices, smartphones will reportedly have three displays and two hinges to support the foldable screen. Just for reference, the tri-fold smartphones will have tablet-like bigger displays, however, they could be easily foldable into a regular-sized smartphone.

This year, two leading smartphone brands, Huawei and Tecno showcased their upcoming tri-fold smartphones. While the Huawei Mate XT is expected to launch next week, Tecno has just showcased a concept of the smartphone. However, it is expected that by the end of 2025, we may see the tri-fold smartphone growing with other brands joining the race. Now, what does the future have in store for tri-fold smartphones, let’s have a look.

Future of tri-fold smartphones

Since we are entering the new tech market, it is worth noting its impact on the consumers and market. With Huawei starting a new lifestyle trend, it is certain that other brands will also join the race. However, what benefits will it bring to the consumer? Well, the tri-fold smartphone will likely have a bigger tablet-like display enabling users to enjoy high-quality videos, play higher graphic games, and effectively multitask on a bigger screen.

However, the smartphone will also bring challenges such as smartphone size and weight management, durability with multiple folds and impact resistance capabilities, and the major concern would be software optimisation. Apart from these, battery life and camera performance would be another major concern for users since they will be paying a much higher price.

Therefore, the tri-fold smartphones may seem like an exciting innovation, however, it will take some time to fully evolve to become a major lifestyle statement as the current foldable devices. Since consumers will have several doubts about the innovation, we are also keen to see how these smartphones will evolve over time.