Gadgets

OnePlus Teases Its Foldable Phone With Flat-Folding Design

Ravi Kumar

Oct 05,2023
3 min read
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The OnePlus foldable, which is rumored to be called the OnePlus Open, is being pitched as a collaboration between OnePlus and Oppo and will carry the sub-brand’s name in some markets and Oppo’s branding in others. Oppo is no stranger to the foldable market, having already released several generations of Find N devices since 2021.

OnePlus and Oppo are releasing the same foldable phone under different names, OnePlus confirmed in an announcement emailed to The Verge today. The company says that Oppo chief product officer Peter Lau, who co-founded OnePlus, directed teams at both companies to develop the phone in tandem to be released under both brands in different markets, though the email did not say which phone will go where.

OnePlus would like to remind everyone it’s also doing a foldable.

During the video, Lewis Hilsenteger, the host of Unbox Therapy, engaged in a conversation with Pete Lau, the founder of OnePlus and current Chief Product Officer of Oppo. The standout feature of this unnamed folding phone lies in its remarkable flat-folding capability. According to Lau, OnePlus has secured 35 patents associated with the innovative hinge design of this new foldable phone. These patents collectively aim to reduce its weight and size while enhancing its durability.

With all eyes on Samsung’s new foldables yesterday, Oppo subbrand OnePlus couldn’t help itself. “We OPEN when others FOLD,” the brand tweeted, in reference to the rumored name of its foldable. It confirmed its foldable plans in February, when it said it’d be releasing the foldable in the second half of the year.

Release date

OnePlus has yet to disclose specific details about the launch of the OnePlus Open, but it has confirmed that the release will happen very soon. Pete Lau, the founder of OnePlus and SVP and CPO of OPPO, has officially affirmed that the OnePlus Open and OPPO Find N3 are identical devices. Both brands intend to unveil the phone simultaneously.

Initially, a leak on July 13 from tipster Max Jambor pointed to an August 26 launch date for the OnePlus foldable. However, a more recent rumour suggests that OnePlus postponed the launch due to display-related issues. Additionally, another well-known tipster mentioned that the delay of the OnePlus Open was linked to OPPO's ongoing patent dispute with Nokia.

With companies like Apple and Google yet to enter the foldable market, Oppo is now on its second round of folding phones — though they’ve mostly been limited to China. The Find N was a tablet-style foldable released in 2021 with a surprisingly refined design for a first-gen product. Oppo followed it up in late 2022 with the Find N2 and Find N2 Flip. The latter is a clamshell-style device in the vein of Samsung’s Z Flip series, and it’ll be Oppo’s first foldable available in Europe when it goes on sale in just a couple of days.