Tecno showcases 10-inch tri-fold screen phone

Following the rollable Phantom Ultimate design last year, Tecno continues to introduce the Phantom Ultimate 2 in a tri-fold form. In bar phone mode, the 6.48-inch screen uses an LTPO OLED panel. When opened, the size increases to 10 inches with a resolution of 1,620 x 2,880px and a 4:3 aspect ratio similar to Apple's iPad.

Tecno says the Phantom Ultimate 2 is the first foldable phone to use TDDI technology, which places both the display driver and the touch sensor on a single chip. The new technology allows for flexible folding angles and an impressively thin 11mm when folded, thanks to a dual-hinge mechanism developed by the company.

According to Tecno, the phone has been tested and works well up to a limit of 300,000 folds. To help reduce the overall thinness, the company has also successfully developed the thinnest battery cover design on a smartphone, measuring just 0.25mm.

The dual-hinge mechanism helps the Phantom Ultimate 2 minimize the crease in the middle of the screen. The manufacturer also offers some ideas for the machine's usage position, such as like a laptop with the bottom half folded for the keyboard, taking notes, or a tent mode that allows two people to talk with the live translation feature.

To increase multitasking, Tecno customized the Android operating system to support multiple application windows at the same time, taking advantage of the large 10-inch screen. The company has not announced the product configuration but it will likely run the most powerful Snapdragon chip.

The Phantom Ultimate 2 is currently a concept product with no plans to be released to the market. Previously, many companies were also said to be researching tri-fold phones such as Samsung and Huawei. In early May, CSOT, a subsidiary of TCL, also showed off a prototype phone with a 7.85-inch screen when fully opened and able to fold in three, instead of in half.