Samsung Display Patent Hints at Tri-Fold Phone With Two Hinges, S Pen Support

Samsung Display was recently granted a patent for a tri-fold smartphone that can be folded twice. The company currently offers single-fold flip and book-style foldables, but has yet to launch a competitor to the Huawei Mate XT Ultimate Design. According to a recent report, Samsung is developing a new tri-fold foldable phone that is expected to launch in the coming months, alongside the Galaxy Z Fold 7 and Galaxy Z Flip 7. This handset is said to debut with a new foldable design that utilises a separate cover display.

Samsung Tri-Fold Phone Patent Reveals Presence of Three External Cameras

The US Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) recently granted a patent to Samsung Display (via 91Mobiles) for a device with a tri-fold display. The document contains several images of a device with two hinges, and the three display panels can be unfolded to form a much larger screen.

Like the Huawei Mate XT Ultimate Design that arrived last year, Samsung's latest patent shows a smartphone that unfolds horizontally. The document indicates the presence of a horizontally-aligned external camera module (Fig. 10). The volume rocker is seen at the top of one of the folding panels (Fig. 13), and there's a USB Type-C port on the bottom edge of the opposite panel (Fig. 14).

Images of Samsung's tri-fold phone from the patent document
Photo Credit: USPTO

The document also suggests that the inner display on the tri-fold smartphone will be surrounded by slightly thick bezels. It appears to feature a single camera on the left panel, while the one on the right appears to house an S Pen (Fig. 9), which means that it could offer support for features that require a stylus.

Samsung has shown off several prototypes for foldable devices with two hinges since 2022, but the company has yet to launch a commercial version of these 'Flex G' and 'Flex S' foldables. According to a recent report, the company could be gearing up to launch its first tri-fold smartphone, that could arrive as soon as July.

The rumoured Samsung G Fold could introduce a new design with three panels that fold in the shape of a G, instead of the Z-shaped fold on the Huawei Mate XT Ultimate Design. Samsung's tri-fold smartphone could feature a separate cover display, as the inner screen of the Galaxy G Fold wouldn't be exposed while the handset is folded.

While Samsung's latest patent also describes a phone that also folds in the shape of a G, it is currently unclear whether the company plans to launch a foldable phone with this design in the future. We can expect to learn more about the company's first tri-fold smartphone in the coming months, as it is expected to launch — in select markets — alongside the Galaxy Z Fold 7 and Galaxy Z Flip 7.