Positive, Floor Duo followers received upset at Microsoft as soon as it turned apparent {that a} Floor Duo 3 was not coming to {the marketplace}. Sure, the Floor Duo had its followers regardless that it wasn’t a real foldable cellphone and was merely two panels linked within the center with a hinge. So whereas there is no such thing as a crease in the course of the bigger show, when the Floor Duo is open, there’s a hinge that you just actually need to ignore to create the phantasm that you just’re utilizing a bigger tablet-sized show.
The second (and final) Floor Duo encompasses a pair of 5.8-inch shows that can be utilized as an exterior cowl display on the entrance or on the again of the cellphone. When the machine is totally open, customers have a tablet-sized 8.3-inch canvas to work with. Let’s give the Floor Duo a second of silence. That is sufficient. Now, what’s subsequent from Microsoft in the way in which of a smartphone? A patent utility filed by Microsoft may shine some gentle on the shape issue that the corporate is contemplating for its subsequent linked cellphone.
A patent utility printed by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Workplace (USPTO) on the finish of final month titled “Foldable computing machine backbone cowl plate” reveals a Galaxy Z Fold kind machine that opens across the vertical axis. A brand new mechanism referred to as the backbone cowl plate covers the hinge and the world the place the display folds in an effort to defend it. Microsoft says that the backbone cowl plate can be utilized to cowl gaps stopping mud and water from stepping into the machine.
The Floor Duo 2
Microsoft is in search of the backbone cowl plate to kill two birds with one stone. The cellphone will likely be extra sturdy and thus much less susceptible to sustaining harm from an unintentional hit. And it additionally will make it tougher for a crease to be seen. By pulling itself nearer to the hinge mechanism when the machine is closed, the backbone cowl plate makes the cellphone thinner and simpler to carry.
Illustration from Microsoft’s patent utility
Within the patent utility, Microsoft writes, “By retracting the backbone cowl plate towards the central backbone as the primary display-supporting body and the second display-supporting body are rotated right into a face-to-face orientation, the width of the folded computing machine is decreased, thereby enabling simpler and extra snug dealing with of the machine, resembling with one hand.”
The Floor Duo had its supporters regardless that it actually was a distinct segment product. When Floor chief Panos Panay left Microsoft final September, it may need modified Microsoft’s future plans for one more Floor cellphone. Nonetheless, this patent utility has been printed and we’ll see whether or not it results in an actual foldable cellphone from Microsoft.
