Daily Authority: ???? Fold ‘n Roll prototype

TCL appears to have been pushing forward with its rollable foldable (or foldable rollable?) idea, after showing off a render of its Fold ‘n Roll earlier this year. 

Take a look below (sorry for the tiny size) at the concept phone that helps you avoid needing to choose between folding or rolling tech:

• There’s a complete video at the link showing a fairly hairy prototype, with the software not ready for prime time, as you’d expect.
• It shows, as you can glimpse in the gif, that the screen extends to the left when unfolded, offering more pixels for the owner.
• The design was shown at last month’s DTC 2021 in China with a video published by Fold Universe.

What it means:

• This has a few different meanings, I feel.
• One is that it’s great to see more form-factors, more interesting/weird phones, more innovations that are trying things, and that TCL is working on ideas.
• Another is that this will probably never see the light of day. 
• TCL teased us with foldable prototypes, rollables, and talk of its hinge technology and so on, and then in September this year, confirmed it had “suspended” its foldable phone plans codenamed “Chicago,” despite investing “billions,” a claim which still makes no sense.
• But, the last point to stir into the mix is that a few weeks ago, at the TCL Huaxing Technology Conference 2021, TCL also showed off a 360° foldable display, which was listed as a world first.
• TCL Huaxing, part of TCL’s conglomerate group, has worked with the likes of Xiaomi in the past.
• So it’s not just a TCL possibility here, and while I don’t fully expect anyone to have a Fold ‘n Roll or a 360° foldable display phone in 2022, the boundaries are being tested…

By the way: Stable Android 12 update or One UI X is now arriving on the Galaxy Z Fold 3 and Z Flip 3.

“The Church of the 95% Confidence Interval”, or Hallgrimskirkja, in Reykjavik, Iceland:

• Apparently a great view from the top, just watch out you’re not there at the top of the hour when the bells go…

Bonus: new metaverse dropped.

Tristan Rayner, Senior Editor