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OPPO says there's no 'short-term' plan for commercial rollable phone
- There are no short-term plans to release the OPPO X 2021 rollable phone.
- OPPO adds that commercialization requires research and business justification.
- The brand also noted that the X 2021 screen is made out of plastic.
OPPO made tech headlines last week when it revealed the X 2021 rollable phone concept at its Inno Day 2020 event. The design offers a 6.7-inch smartphone screen that extends from the side to deliver a 7.4-inch display.
It makes for an intriguing alternative to foldable phones, but OPPO has now told Android Authority there aren’t any plans to offer a commercial release in the near future.
“Although there is no plan for its commercialization in the short term, it will serve as a guide for the transformation and evolution of future product form factors,” the company told us in response to an emailed query.
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“Commercialization requires market research and business justification, and may take some time,” OPPO added. In other words, it sounds like there’s no guarantee that the firm will release a rollable phone in general. But at the very least, OPPO could use the concept phone’s development as a reference to explore other phone designs.
OPPO also confirmed to Android Authority that it’s currently using a “plastic surface on the screen” but that it’s using a “hard cover” ostensibly to improve toughness. This suggests that rollable phone screens will have the same durability as foldables.
Nevertheless, those wanting to get their hands on a commercial rollable phone might want to wait for LG’s Project B device to launch instead. It’s believed that LG’s take on the rollable phone will launch in March 2021.