Smartphones come with minimal bezels these days. Hence, the front-facing camera is either placed in a notch or a punch-hole. Future phones are even expected to come with an under-display camera. But OnePlus had recently patented a smartphone design with a long-forgotten selfie camera solution.

OnePlus Technology (Shenzhen) Co. Ltd. filed a patent with the WIPO (World Intellectual Property Office) in mid-2020 titled ‘display apparatus’. This patent got approved and published on February 4, 2021. 

As usual, it was first spotted by LetsGoDigital and the publication even created a beautiful render for it based on the design of the upcoming OnePlus 9 and OnePlus 9 Pro.

According to the patent documentation, this smartphone design includes the front-facing camera in the top thin bezel. Hence, users will not be distracted like on phones with notch and punch hole.

Also, the patent’s paperwork notes that this solution is inexpensive than digging a hole in the display panel. Because the production costs are low, while the yield and reliability are high. Hence, it could be a better alternative to not only notches and punch holes but also under-display tech.

As of now, we cannot say for sure whether OnePlus will be releasing a smartphone with this type of selfie camera placement. But there’s a possibility as in-screen camera solutions have their own set of pros and cons, in addition to being expensive.

Last but not least, it is worth noting that Meizu had already used a similar design for Meizu 16s Pro and Meizu 16T. However, the bezels were slightly thicker than this design patent.

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There have been multiple 3D smartphones in the past, however, none of them took off. Hence, major companies did not try investing in it. But now, out of the blue, Xiaomi has patented a design for such a handset.

According to LetsGoDigital, Beijing Xiaomi Mobile Software applied for this design patent with The Hague International Design Bulletin, part of the WIPO (World Intellectual Property Office) last month (January 2021). But surprisingly, the application for this patent was approved within a month and its documentation was published on February 5, 2021.

The design showcases a smartphone with no notch, punch-hole, or pop-up module. Hence, it could feature an under-display camera. Further, on the back, the device houses a total of four cameras, one on each corner.

Whereas, the right side includes a power key along with a volume rocker and the left side features a SIM card slot. Lastly, the bottom of the handset houses a USB Type-C port, a 3.5mm headphone jack, and holes for a speaker as well as a microphone.

As far as those four cameras are concerned, they can be used for 3D photography and videography. Like we mentioned in the beginning, there were many phones in the past like HTC Evo 3D and LG Optimus 3D with similar functionalities. But they did not succeed. In fact, 3D has been now replaced by AR and VR in entertainment.

Therefore, we don’t see Xiaomi launching a 3D smartphone in the near future.

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Xiaomi is known for launching out of the world concept phones and patenting weird designs. The company has done the former through the Mi Mix Alpha and the latter via n-number of patents. For instance, we recently saw a smartphone design with a detachable camera layout. Today, yet another patent appears online and this time it’s the wrap-around display, again.

Xiaomi is not new to patenting smartphone designs with a surround display. The latest patent, which was applied by Xiaomi and approved by WIPO’s Hague International Design System, also has one. LetsGoDigital has unearthed this patent, and as it says, the design is reminiscent of an older patent.

If you recall, one of the company’s patents having a surround display with a pop-up camera at the top got published recently. Well, this one seems to have similar schematics but the difference is a display with a notch. That is, this design doesn’t have any mechanical parts but has a wide notch in the front to accommodate selfie shooters and sensors.

At the bottom, everything from Speaker, Primary Microphone, 3.5mm audio jack, Type-C port placements are the same. However, at the top, the pop-up is missing(obviously) and the power key and secondary mic are at the left instead of the right. The display, which wraps around the device, has a notch like the recent iPhones.

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It’s worth noting that the 3D renders show that the selfie arrangement is projecting slightly up(Model 2 from Image) from the display area. While the reason is unknown, this could just be to keep the phone slimmer or maybe grab the energy of the impact when fallen upright down. Either way, these are just speculations from my side.

Considering the Mi Mix Alpha didn’t even enter mass production, we can’t expect this to debut as a commercial design anytime soon. Meanwhile, Xiaomi is finally figuring out to launch a foldable device in 2021.

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Before punch-hole displays became mainstream in the smartphone industry, we had phones with pop-up cameras, in addition to devices with various types of notches. However, Samsung did not release a single pop-up camera handset but did launch a rotating camera mobile called Galaxy A80. But now, the company has patented a unique pop-up camera module for smartphones.

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According to LetsGoDigital, Samsung Electronics filed a patent titled ‘Electronic device including camera module’ with the WIPO (World Intellectual Property Office) in mid-2020. This patent got approved and published on January 14.

This design patent demonstrates a rotatable pop-up camera module. According to the documentation, the module may house at least three cameras. In the normal state, all these sensors will face backward.

EDITOR’S PICK: Samsung confirms it’s got rollable and slidable displays in the works

But in the selfie mode and video calls, this cylindrical module will rotate to face the front and will slightly pop-up out of the phone’s body to expose a single sensor at the top. The documentation also mentions an option to disclose the second sensor as well by rising the module even further.

This system uses a motor, two gears, and a long propeller shaft. It also includes a movable frame that shifts to the void place when the camera module rises. This frame house a flexible printed circuit board.

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Having said that, we don’t expect Samsung to release a commercial smartphone with this solution. Because it sounds more fragile than the regular pop-up camera system. That said, the above renders are created by Jermaine Smit (Concept Creator) for LetsGoDigital.

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Xiaomi’s Mi MIX series is known for its bezel-less design. Unfortunately, the company has not released a new model in a very long time. However, it has patented a wide variety of devices with full-screen design in the past few months. Now, yet another new design emerges with a unique slider display implementation.

As usual, this Xiaomi patent was first spotted by LetsGoDigtial. As per the publication, Beijing Xiaomi Mobile Software filed this patent with the WIPO (World Intellectual Property Office) and the USPTO (United States Patent and Trademark Office). It got approved and published on October 29, 2020.

According to the documentation, this design includes a slider display similar to the Mi MIX 3 5G. But unlike that phone, this handset’s display covers the front and runs along the bottom side up until half of its back.

EDITOR’S PICK: Xiaomi patents a smartphone design with surround display and pop-up cameras

Hence, the only places without a screen on this design are the top, sides, and the top portion of the rear panel. This design is somewhat similar to the Xiaomi AI Super Camera smartphone patent from last year but with a magnetic slider.

Since this design’s display continues from the front to the back from the bottom side, it uses a roller mechanism inside the slider to slide down the front panel to reveal the selfie camera, an ambient light sensor, a distance sensor, a dot projector, and the receiver. This slider can also be moved by voice command.

In other words, this new Xiaomi patent is a combination of slider, rollable, and full-screen smartphone. That said, we don’t think the Chinese smartphone maker will ever release such a device for the commercial market but it may showcase it as a concept like the Mi MIX Alpha.

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Lastly, the renders included in this article are created by an industrial designer called Sarang Sheth, in collaboration with LetsGoDigtial. Also, it is worth noting that the rear camera setup from the Mi 10T Pro is just for reference.

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Last week, a design panted by Google revealed that the search giant could be working on a fitness tracker similar to Amazon Halo. Now, a set of design patents has appeared showcasing a smartphone without a front-facing camera.

These design patents were filed by Google with the USPTO (United States Patents and Trademarks Office). They were unearthed by Patently Apple. According to the publication, there are a total of four similar patents with slight variations and they go by the numbers – D903,618, D903,619, D903,620, and D903,622 respectively.

All of them have one thing in common and that is the smartphone in the sketches does not feature a display cutout for the selfie camera. But some of them do have an indication of an under-display earpiece.

Hence, the publication suggests these smartphone designs to feature an under-display camera. Further, none of these four patents show a rear-mounted fingerprint sensor as found on all the Pixels except Pixel 4 and Pixel 4 XL. Hence, we believe them to sport an under-display fingerprint sensor as well.

That said, apart from these two additions, the designs are similar to that of Pixel 5 and Pixel 4a 5G. They have the same button placements and an identical dual-camera setup array. The only difference is that the LED flash sits below as the secondary microphone is located at the top.

Anyway, we are not sure if any of these four design patents will ever end up as a final product just like numerous other patents.

UP NEXT: Google removes astrophotography mode for ultra-wide camera on Pixel 5 & Pixel 4a 5G

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Last year, Xiaomi shocked the world by unveiling Mi MIX Alpha, a concept smartphone with a surround display. This device never made into mas-production and therefore, it did not hit the shelves although the company had plans to sell this phone in a limited quantity in China. Now, more than a year later, a Xiaomi smartphone design patent with similar looks has emerged.

This new Xiaomi patent was unearthed by LetsGoDigital. According to the publication, the company applied it with The Hague Bulletin, part of the WIPO (World Intellectual Property Office). The documentation for the same got published on December 18, 2020.

These documents include 16 sketches detailing the design of a smartphone with a 360° surround display. But unlike the Mi MIX Alpha, this design does not include a vertical frame on the rear. Instead, it features a wide pop-up module at the top housing a triple camera setup accompanied by a dual-LED flash.

The top of the handset also includes the power key and a hole for the secondary microphone. Whereas, the bottom part of the device features a USB Type-C port, a speaker grille, a primary microphone hole, and even a 3.5mm headphone jack.

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Having said that, we don’t see Xiaomi releasing a consumer phone with a such design in near future. Because the firm did not even sell the first generation product and this model comes with pop-up cameras, which all the OEMs have been avoiding now.

UP NEXT: Xiaomi patents a smartphone design with an all-around screen and a huge 108MP sensor

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Samsung is the market leader in the foldable smartphone category. The Galaxy Z Flip is the world’s best setting foldable handset. Its successor is reported to launch in spring 2021. Ahead of it, the company has patented a design for a similar phone with improvements.

According to LetsGoDigital, Samsung Electronics filed a design patent titled ‘Foldable electronic device’ with the WIPO (World Intellectual Property Office) in June 2020. After its approval, the documentation for this patent got published on December 10.

The clamshell foldable smartphone in this design patent is similar to the Galaxy Z Flip and Galaxy Z Flip 5G but with a larger cover display, more cameras, and a better hinge. Hence, we can expect the same elements in the upcoming Galaxy Z Flip 2.

The cover display in this design is located at the center like on the Motorola razr 5G but it seems to be comparatively smaller. Anyway, it is larger than the tiny screen present in the current-gen Galaxy Z Flip.

Further, it features a triple camera setup instead of a dual-camera module along with an LED flash. Interestingly, there’s no punch-hole camera in the inner display. It looks like one of those circular things on the top bezel could be for the front-facing camera.

Lastly, but most importantly, this design sports a redesigned hinge that not only supports Flex Mode but also shuts the phone with zero-gap.

UP NEXT: Google, OPPO, Vivo and Xiaomi to launch foldable phones in 2021

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Last month, OPPO X 2021 was unveiled as the world’s first rollable concept smartphone. On the other hand, LG has also confirmed to release such a device next year as part of its ‘Explorer Project’. Now, a Xiaomi smartphone design patent with a similar form factor has been published.

Beijing Xiaomi Mobile Software filed this patent with the USPTO (United States Patent and Trademark Office) at the end of 2019. The patent titled ‘Terminal with flexible screen’ later got approved on October 29, 2020, and even got published in the WIPO (World Intellectual Property Office) database.

According to patent documents, this smartphone design includes a rollable flexible panel and a secondary normal display at the back. The rollable screen present in this phone can be extended by up to 200% in width. Therefore, the device can be also used as a tablet.

EDITOR’S PICK: Xiaomi and Redmi to launch two flagship models with Snapdragon 888 SoC each

Also, the documents say that these displays will be activated based on what side of the phone is facing the user like Microsoft Surface Duo. However, it also has an option to use both the screens at the same time.

Further, since the patent is all about the user experience and durability, the design sketches do not showcase anything else. Hence, LetsGoDigital, the publication that found this patent partnered with Concept Creator (Jermaine Smit) to create 3D renders.

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Since the original sketches are barebone, the designer has added a vertically aligned triple camera setup along with an LED flash inspired by Mi Mix Alpha. Additionally, the renders also include the ‘Xiaomi’ branding.

Having said that, we think that there’s a probability of Xiaomi showcasing such a smartphone as a concept. But we are not sure if it will ever end up in consumer’s hands.

UP NEXT: Xiaomi aims to overtake Huawei and Apple next year with 240 million smartphone shipments

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Lately, OPPO has been filing patents for a wide variety of smartphone designs. It even showcased the world’s first rollable concept smartphone last month in the form of OPPO X 2021. Now, a new design patent by the company imagines a smartphone with a detachable camera module.

This patent was filed by Guangdong Oppo Mobile Telecommunications with the WIPO (World Intellectual Property Organization). We are not sure who found it first but 91Mobiles did not mention the filing and publication times of this patent.

Talking about the design, the phone used in the sketches seem to be generic with no notch or punch-hole on the front. Perhaps, it may have an under-display camera. But then again, there are no physical buttons or ports as well. Hence, we believe that it is indeed for illustration only.

EDITOR’S PICK: OPPO patents Unique Foldable Smartphone designs with a weird Block structure

Anyway, the main aspect of this patent is the detachable camera module located at the back. This module houses a dual-camera setup along with an LED flash and it connects with the phone via USB Type-C.

The connector port on this module can be adjusted up to 90° and therefore, the rear camera setup can also be used for selfies and video calls. In other words, it is similar to ASUS Zenfone 6 and Zenfone 7/7Pro but the camera module can be detached as well as replaced with a different supported module with another set of cameras.

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Having said that, we don’t expect OPPO to release a commercial smartphone with this design. Because many others have tried modularity on mobile phones and have failed terribly.

UP NEXT: OPPO patents a smartphone design with circular pop-up camera module and 15x hybrid zoom

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With Huawei’s smartphone market share dropping, Xiaomi and OPPO came out as the beneficiaries in the third quarter of 2020 in Western Europe, as per IDC. The former has had a presence in these regions for a while now. But the latter has now begun to take advantage of Huawei’s situation. In order to excel, OPPO has also been filing various patents in the past few months. One such new smartphone design patent with a 15x zoom camera has emerged.

Guangdong Oppo Mobile Telecommunications filed this new smartphone design patent in July 2020. It got approved and published last month on November 6. As usual, LetsGoDigital was the first to find it and the publication even teamed up with Concept Creator (Jermaine Smit) for 3D renders.

According to the patent documents, this OPPO smartphone design includes a curved display on the front with a centered punch-hole. In case you do not know, for some unknown reason, only Samsung has released OLED smartphones with centered punch-hole so far. 

EDITOR’S PICK: OPPO patents Unique Foldable Smartphone designs with a weird Block structure

But recently, Fujitsu Arrows NX9 F-52A became the first non-Samsung with such a display. However, this device will be limited to Japan and will only go on sale in late January. Hence, we think that this exclusivity has now ended and we may see more consumer-ready handsets as well as design patents with centered punch-hole OLED display in the future.

Coming back to the patent, the back of the handset houses a horizontally aligned triple camera setup. The original sketches do not have any text, but the 3D renders by Jermaine include ‘15X ZOOM’ lettering below the LED flash since this phone supports up to 15x hybrid zoom, as per documents.

If this sounds similar, then you aren’t alone. That’s because OPPO filed a similar smartphone design patent but with a circular pop-up camera module instead of a punch-hole. In other words, the placement of the selfie camera is the only major difference between these two designs.

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Last but not least, the handset has a power key on the right side, volume buttons on the left side,  and a USB Type-C port at the bottom along with a speaker grille and a primary microphone. Concept Creator has included a 3.5mm headphone jack for fun, but do note that the original sketches do not have it.

Having said, unlike the design patent with a circular pop-up camera module, this one can be easily implemented without much complexity. Hence, OPPO can bring this design to the market if the company wants to.

UP NEXT: Oppo X 2021 unveiled as the world’s first smartphone concept with an extending display

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