LG Will Launch a Phone With a Second Screen Attachment

An anonymous reader quotes a report from CNET: LG's next smartphone may have you seeing double. And no, it's not because of a foldable display. The company will launch a smartphone, whose name hasn't been finalized, that will have an option for a second-screen attachment, according to a person familiar with the situation. The attachment, which the person describes as a sort of case with a screen, could potentially double the total screen size of the device. It's one of multiple phones launching at the Mobile World Congress trade show next month, the person said. While the company is mulling the G8 name, it's unclear whether the multiple-screen phone will carry the name of its flagship line. There was some confusion over LG launching a foldable smartphone thanks to a report by Korean-language outlet Naver. But this phone won't fold.

Any reason flip phones aren't coming back?

[PingSpike]

There seems to be this weird push for foldable displays lately...I get the idea I suppose, it can be tablet big sometimes. But it all looks so janky I don't see how it can be made into a robust product.

Why haven't they just added a second flip out screen (sort of like a nintendo ds, or an old flip phone with a screen taking place of the dialpad) Even if it only displayed the pop up keyboard most of the time it seems like it would improve usability of the phone, naturally protect both screens while closed and not increase pocket size much.

Are there products like this?

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[Dread Cthulhu]

Flipout smartphones are being made - look up the Samsung W2019 for a recent one. For some reason they only sell them in China & a couple other parts of eastern Asian; you would have to custom import one if you lived elsewhere.

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[Gilgaron]

I think one reason the sales of smart phones have flattened is that they aren't conspicuous displays of wealth anymore, everybody has a little black rectangle. These flip phones would look visually distinct, as how TV and movies still use flip phones often since it is easier for the audience to tell that the phone is being used by the character. Not exactly a risk free move, but I can see the appeal of the idea of making a phone back into a conspicuous luxury item.

It's called a "laptop"

[DogDude]

If you need a phone with two screens, isn't it easier and cheaper and more functional and more private to just use a laptop/notebook?

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[wed128]

I'd love a laptop that fits in my pocket, but has a full size screen and keyboard somehow. Maybe i need bigger pockets.

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[laffer1]

More like a tablet. Crappy mobile OS + bigger screen.

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[tepples]

If you depend on using mobile-only applications, such as Venmo, the only "laptop/notebook" that can download those from Google Play Store is a Chromebook.

Folding screens = pointless?

[sjbe]

I saw the foldable screen device they were showing recently. My thought was neat proof of concept but there isn't a way in hell I would buy the thing. Thoroughly impractical form factor even if the device happened to work great otherwise. Too big while folded (large air gap) and too fragile to put in a pocket folded which seems to defeat the entire purpose of a phone. It's not really clear to me who would buy the thing or why other than as a toy to play with.

That said I think a device with a cleverly av

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[Red_Forman]

How can a display in the front and the back be useful? You can't see both of them at once. That's the stupidest idea I've ever seen. What a bunch of dumbasses.

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[Kokuyo]

You don't need a selfie camera anymore and can get a screen to body ratio of almost 100%.
Also the one Linus found at CES seems to be pretty good at providing two independent desktops. It seems the back screen can also be divided into zones and used as a touch sensitive input device. For example you could define some game buttons there you could reach with your index fingers.

Two screens front and back could prove surprisingly useful IMO.

Me, I just hope the Cosmo Communicator won't be a dud....

Lack of imagination

[sjbe]

How can a display in the front and the back be useful?

Follow the link and check it out. It's actually a pretty cool idea. They can be different sizes so you can have functions (like a physical keyboard or camera) on one side with a smaller screen and a screen the full size of the device on the other when those aren't needed. More immediately you can just have a camera on one side of the device instead of the clumsy front and back setup two camera setup we have now with smartphones. This allows things like me pointing my camera at my wife/daughter during a

How about something useful...

[Bradmont]

Like a keyboard attachment...

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[pgmrdlm]

That sounds more like your carrier then the phone itself. I have an LG v35 and already have received an update for the OS. I previously had the V10, and defiantly had more then one update in a year. But, due to this being AT&T. They were stretched out. Again, the carrier being the bottle neck. Not the phone itself

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[tepples]

A factory-unlocked phone can receive updates over Wi-Fi without interference from any carrier. But for some brands, even a factory-unlocked phone is no guarantee of continuing security updates.

"innovation"

[Tomahawk]

'cos there isn't really much else you can do with a rectangular slab of glass to differentiate yourself from everyone else, so lets do some crazy stuff that nobody really asked for...

Just give me a 6" 16:9 dead-flat screen. I don't need (or want) anything fancy, or curvy, or "3D"/"2.5D". Make the innards good -- a good processor, a good battery, lots of memory, lots of storage. Innovate there and give me the best you can give me. But stop with this other craziness...

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[Daralantan]

Make the innards good -- a good processor, a good battery, lots of memory, lots of storage. Innovate there and give me the best you can give me. But stop with this other craziness...

And instead you will now be given a glove. A Power Glove!

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[Tomahawk]

*click*

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[account_deleted]

Comment removed based on user account deletion

Tri fold phone!

[140Mandak262Jamuna]

Very good idea, But why stop with bifold?

Just a trifold case, open it out, one opens to form a screen, the main phone changes to a full Qwerty keyboard touch screen, and the the third fold forms a track pad/mouse.

Then in a few iterations, as the size of the screen grows inevitably, to say 10 inches diagonal, the touchscreen keyboard and the track pad can be merged into for form a bifold, ditch the touch screen keyboard to save cost and profit .... baby ...!

If you ask someone to hold a lap top to their e

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[account_deleted]

Comment removed based on user account deletion

Laptop you can make cellphone calls on

[Rick Schumann]

Memo to cellphone and tablet manufacturers: Why not just cut to the chase and make a laptop computer you can make telephone calls on? That's the direction you all seem to be going anyway, so just do it already. </sarcasm>

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[Anonymous Coward]

CELL CO. CEO: "We need a phone that can double as a laptop"
CELL ENGINEER: "No problem. Just put USB-C port in and a dock and the users can plug in all their stuff."
CELL CO. CEO: "Can we make it so they need to buy all their stuff from us, like Apple? So we can lock them in?"
CELL ENGINEER: (Hesitating) "I... I guess we could do that, but it would piss off the users."
CELL CO. CEO: "OOO! Can we make it so users need to buy a special cable. OH! What if they had to buy extra parts to add to the cell phone to ma

QWERTY Slider

[Anonymous Coward]

If someone made an up to date QWERTY slider phone now, I would definitely buy it.
Slabs are fine, but if you need to do some real work, then an onscreen keyboard taking up half the screen is really frustrating.
Moto Milestone 1 was my last one... such a great little phone.

One for each eyeball ?

[Alain Williams]

I can't see why else you would want this.

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[account_deleted]

Comment removed based on user account deletion

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[dargaud]

There are plenty of good cheap phones with removable battery, SD card slot, 2 SIMs, FM radio and headphone jack. Mine is a Wiko View 32, it's excellent, cheap and I bought it for several family members because of it. 140€/$.