Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 4 might have a rotating camera, but there's a catch

(Image credit: Future)

the

Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 3

is probably about to land, with leaks and even official teasers suggesting it will arrive on August 11th. But we've already gotten a glimpse of what the Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 4 could look like, and there could be some big changes.

A Samsung patent application filed with the World Intellectual Property Office (WIPO) and spotted by

LetsGoDigital

, details a flip phone that looks a lot like the

Samsung Galaxy Z Flip

, except it has a much larger secondary screen and a rotating camera.

This camera is a dual-lens camera that lives in the hinge, and you can rotate it to be usable when the phone is closed (with only the cover screen visible) or when it's open, and at different angles in between the two. So this can be used for both selfies and all your other photography needs.

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the

Samsung Galaxy S22

is on the horizon

It wouldn't be the first time a phone has had a rotating camera. the

Samsung Galaxy A80

had one for example, just like the

Oppo N1

– and which launched from the ground up in 2013. But it would be the first foldable phone with a rotating camera.

The benefits are obvious: you get a premium camera for selfies, and the phone doesn't need a notch or a hole-punch to house one of its cameras. The camera slot in the hinge would also help provide a larger secondary screen, as it wouldn't need to be left for camera lenses next to the screen.

(Image credit: Samsung/LetsGoDigital)

That's great, but if you've looked at the sketches above, you've probably noticed a few issues with this implementation of a rotating camera. By fitting it into the hinge, the hinge itself has to be much bigger, which makes the phone look bigger too.

On top of that the hinge and camera protrude far when the phone is folded open, so you won't be able to lay it flat like that, and it generally looks a bit inelegant, which isn't not something you want with an expensive foldable.

For these reasons - coupled with the fact that patents often don't become products - we're not convinced the Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 4 will have this design. Samsung is rumored to be using an in-display selfie camera for the

Galaxy Z Fold 3

, so we think it's more likely that the company will continue down this path - making the camera components less conspicuous and prominent, not more.

Especially since rotating cameras never really caught on, although companies have been experimenting with them for years. We wouldn't totally rule out a rotating camera for the Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 4, but we'd say it's unlikely there will be one, especially with this design. However, a larger secondary screen is certainly possible.

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James Rogerson

James is a freelance writer and sub-editor for phones, tablets, and wearables at TechRadar. He loves anything “smart,” from watches to lights, and can often argue with AI assistants or drown out the latest apps.

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