Xiaomi is apparently looking into modular
designs that were a popular smartphone concept a couple of years back. A new
patent from the Chinese tech giant was published earlier today (4th August
2020) and details a device with a removable display.
The patent was filed with CNIPA (China
National Intellectual Property Administration) under the title of “two
component phone,” and was reported on by LetsGoDigital. Looking at the images
that were found with the patent, a device can be observed along with a
removable display that can be taken out and connected to the smartphone at
will. When the device is not conencted, a dual camera system can be seen on the
front along with an LED flash, meaning it sports an under screen selfie
shooter.
While the display is connected, the
smartphone is no different from any regular handset. The display can also be
seen separately in the patent, with its rear having twin ports that resemble a
speaker grill with small holes that connect to the pins that can be seen in the
main body of the device. The patent also hints that the display can be used
separately without the main body, but how exactly it achieves this is currently
unknown.
While having a removable and functioning
display might have some positives, it really doesn’t seem very practical. One
might be able to use the screen as a viewfinder or control and have the main
body act as a camera. However, this is still a very isolated example. This
might just be an attempt to cover all bases from Xiaomi so we might never
actually see the device being launched.
