As much as I love my Nintendo Switch and Steam Deck, I’m not convinced the handheld gaming console exercise has been nearly perfected from-wise since Nintendo’s Game Boy.
Sure the need for batteries and the chunky build of the original model wasn’t ideal, but later models made the cosine more pocketable. And the Game Boy Advance SP took it even further with a flippable design.
Foldable phones arguably make some headway giving a bigger screen for gaming but also a device that fits into a jacket pocket. But the software and gaming experience has yet to be perfected here. And for proper modern gaming power one needs a larger console.
So what’s the solution to this? Well, I think it might be a foldable console.
Sounds a bit odd doesn’t it? But my fellow managing editor and gaming fan, Josie Watson, got a look at a foldable console concept from Samsung Display. Check the video out below.
I have to say I’m rather sold on this design. Usually, I’m skeptical about such concepts; last year we saw a flexible display that could be worn as almost a sci-fi-like smartwatch and I wasn’t convinced by it.
But a foldable console that takes a Switch-style design and helps make it more pocket-sized is pretty compelling.
Obviously, there would be concerns over cooling and how much performance could be extracted from such a device. Yet mobile tech has advanced enough to cleverly split chipsets into modules and use batteries that are separated but provide a single pool of power to tap into.
So I feel that there’s more scope for a foldable games console to become a practical reality.
What’s more, I reckon Microsoft could be the one to make it happen, given it’s partnered with Samsung before on the gaming side; I just don’t expect this to happen with the rumored Xbox handheld.
If nothing else, I’m still glad to see Samsung Display coming up with intriguing concepts, especially when the mainline company is increasingly treading the path of releasing iterative products, as seen with the Samsung Galaxy S25.
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