Google’s Pixel 6 series has already been promoted on billboards and videos but Google seems to be working on another phone called the Pixel Fold. This is a foldable device that folds towards the inside. German website LetsGoDigital posted details of Google’s new patent filed on a foldable smartphone. Based on the patent details, it has created render images giving us glimpses of what to expect from the Google Pixel Fold smartphone.
According to the website, Google has patented a ‘multi-axis hinge mechanism’, shown in the image below. Unfortunately, the patent does not reveal if the design presented is the one that Google plans to bring to market soon. However, LetsGoDigital notes that the patented design matches the dimensions of the Galaxy Z Fold3, a foldable smartphone with a 7.6-inch display.
It is expected that the screen will have a 120Hz refresh rate with an LTPO backplane that will allow the refresh rate to be adjusted depending on the content being viewed. Mobile games, scrolling, and transitions on display would update 120 times per second, while static content would refresh more slowly, such as emails and texts.
The renders show a design that is not unlike the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 3. The selfie camera is housed within a punch hole in the outside display on the top left corner. LetsGoDigital believes that the front display will have reasonably thick bezels, and has as such, reflected so on their renders as well.
Earlier, Google was granted a patent from the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) for a multi-axis soft hinge mechanism and a foldable device having the same.
The patent is for a hinge mechanism that protects the foldable display part from damage caused by excessive tension or compression due to folding and unfolding the foldable device. The new hinge, it seems, will protect the screen from damage caused by opening and closing the phone and help the display curve when it is closed and stay flat when it is open.
