At this year’s Mobile World Congress in Barcelona, Samsung turned some heads with a new concept that could reshape the future of portable gaming and make it, you know, actually portable again. The company, who specialize in foldable phones, unveiled an interesting prototype of a foldable gaming console. Samsung looks to be trying to show that a powerful handheld device that folds in half for easy portability but opens up to reveal a large screen for gaming might be the future of handheld gaming.
Samsung demonstrated their Switch-like device that showcases the potential of foldable screens in the gaming hardware hardware space. The concept aims to strike a balance between portability and performance, offering gamers a compact device that doesn’t compromise on screen size while still being able to fit in your pocket.
More traditional handheld gaming devices like the Nintendo Switch and Steam Deck dominate the market but aren’t quite what we consider portable in the traditional gaming sense. Having to lug around large carrying cases are the standard thanks to the size of these devices and lack of folding design. Portable consoles like the Game Boy Advance not only fit in your pocket but offer protection thanks to its folding design. Even modern portables from companies like Anbernic and PowKiddy now offer fairly powerful devices that fold for portability.
Modern smartphones are more powerful than ever with many even ditching home consoles thanks to the increased power of their mobile chipsets and the popularity of games like Call of Duty, Roblox, and Fortnite. There are even Android phones that specifically target mobile gamers with their beefy features, while Apple devices have impressive gaming potential thanks to platforms like Apple Arcade and the availability of AAA sports titles, Call of Duty, Genshin Impact, and other games that would struggle on consoles of prior generations.
Foldable gaming consoles may the future, especially as devices get larger and more powerful. Samsung’s latest concept shows that the technology has the potential to create flexible, portable gaming hardware. We will wait and see if another company picks up this tech for a future device or it Samsung themselves decide to jump into the portable gaming space somewhere down the line.
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