Motorola’s mobile phone that can be bent into a bracelet is cool, but problematic

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Motorola was too optimistic about its foldable mobile phone, so it is almost certain that customers will not be able to buy such an extravagant mobile phone this year. However, the manufacturer also showed its gadget up close at the MWC exhibition in Barcelona.

Last October, Lenovo, which owns the Motorola brand, presented its latest concept mobile at the Global Tech World ’23 event, which at first glance seems to be the first significant innovation in mobile hardware since the appearance of devices with bendable displays. Although the Chinese manufacturer previously promised that the hardware specifications, release date and price could be revealed at the 2024 Mobile World Congress (MWC), it turned out that we still have to wait.

The most important element of the phone on display is a bendable pOLED (plastic) panel capable of FHD+ resolution, which on the one hand has a textile back cover, and on the other hand, with a little exaggeration, it can be folded as desired.

During the demonstration, we could see it wrapped around the wrist, folded into a bridge, or V-shaped, and the latter served well during the two-person games. The coolest feature of the mobile phone is that, thanks to MotoAI, the user interface adapts to the shape taken and can open Android apps in a usable way even on a small surface.

Lányi Örs / 24.hu Lányi Örs / 24.hu

However, since the product is nothing more than a mere tech demo for the time being, we have to make a compromise, just like with the Apple Vision Pro, in order to use which we have to carry the gadget’s large battery with us. Motorola’s solution is a bit more convenient: in order to be able to wrap the mobile phone around your wrist, you also have to wear a magnetic bracelet, which attracts the magnetic strips on the back to fix the gadget in the given shape.

There are too many question marks

I had several questions about the as-yet-unnamed concept mobile, which were mostly answered. The first is what kind of battery pack can serve this concept. According to the colleague at the manufacturer’s stand, the device is supplied by small, thinly connected cells. This means that the bendability is not complete, there is a break every few centimeters where we can do this.

The other important issue, which, as it turned out, is a serious problem for the manufacturer: the protection of the screen.

The basis of the problem is that there is currently no durable screen panel, glass film, or case that meets today’s industry standards that is so elastic. We did not receive a more detailed answer to how related developments and testing are progressing. And according to what we heard at the presentation, although it was still the case that the details could be revealed at this year’s MWC, we still have to wait, because for now the manufacturer only sees the wristband as a concept mobile. Therefore, it is difficult to give an approximate date when it will be available for purchase.