A cool matte finish phone with a small secondary display on the back panel to make you do more with less intrusion. This brings productivity to the focus and notifications from your phone to stay in the backdrop.
Talk about smartphone designs, and we’ve seen them all the last decade or so. Right from the clamshell designs and sliding ones to the current generation foldables and the evolving rollable screens. Smartphones like Xiaomi Mi 11 Ultra take a detour from the standard phone designs with a secondary small display on the back panel right by the side of the camera module setup. The Nubia Z20 phone with a big display on the rear is also a very brave move. Even the Meizu Pro 7 took a bold step with the vertical secondary screen below the camera module to offset the traditional phone market.
The SPhone by Sergey Popovich looks inspired by this niche smartphone design language with a utility that goes just beyond the display of important notifications. It’s all about creating a space for placing favorite widgets, especially with the possibilities of the Android 12 operating system which sets its focus on functionality and UI design to get more done with beautiful interface design aesthetics at the core. On top of that, the secondary screen on the rear comes in handy for making video calls with the primary lens which is always more potent than the on-screen camera.
Turning down the phone on its face does mean no distractions while you need to work, but missing important notifications or alerts could put the user at a disadvantage. This is where the secondary screen on the back comes into play to beam important notifications and keep the user informed, to either check them right away or delay them for later. Media player controls on the rear is also another undeniable advantage here. The fact that the screen is small means the battery will be preserved for longer as the main display won’t have to be opened every time notifications pop up!
iPhone 13 is slated for launch next month. The sad reality is that much of what we expect to see in iPhone 13 is already released through rumors; we can’t help but wish for Apple to do something groundbreaking and shock us! For example, what if Apple could do this!
This concept, courtesy of ConceptsiPhones’ YouTube channel, is a very futuristic idea that, if you have followed Apple’s intent of delivering products, would never see the light of day. But then, creative liberty promotes the thinkers to conceive the impossible and leave the masses bewildered. That is exactly what this new iPhone 13 concept delivers.
The iPhone 13 conceptual design showcases a curved display that wraps around the screen on all four edges. The phone body looks pretty much iPhone 11-ish and compromises the metal frame in iPhone 12 for the flowing display. Interestingly, the concept highlights a very Android Phone-like vertical camera array on the back, comprising a quad camera setup.
The 6.4-inch Full-Edge Display of the phone is basically the highlight of this concept. There is no notch but a 13-inch under-display camera makes its debut, and the physical buttons on the side have been embedded into the overflowing display on both sides. On the left of the conceptual iPhone 13 are the volume rocker and virtual power button, while on the right you get shortcuts to interact with the phone more seamlessly.
iPhone 13, though, is rumored to launch with a triple camera configuration, which at this point feels more realistic in Apple’s favor.
The 6.4-inch Full-Edge Display of the phone is the highlight of this concept. There is no notch, but a 13-inch under-display camera makes its debut, and the physical buttons on the side have been embedded into the overflowing display on both sides. On the left of this concept are the volume rocker and virtual power button, while on the right, you get shortcuts to interact with the phone more seamlessly.
As cool and futuristic as this concept iPhone 13 may look, Apple will not announce anything on these lines in the fall event next month. However, from the features mentioned in the idea, we will see the integration of A15 Bionic chipset and the debut of iOS 15. Other than this, the concept is far-fetched and only pleasing for the eye and little to the analytical mind. After all, how would one comfortably hold this phone?
When the iPhone 13 launches next month, it is expected to arrive in four variants like its predecessor with faster 5G and a design more or less like the iPhone 12. The big difference in appearance is expected to be a sleeker notch, as the in-display fingerprint sensor will also be missing. In addition, the Pro models are expected to be upgraded to 120Hz ProMotion displays while the camera array will remain identically to the iPhone 12 lineup with the LiDAR scanner is likely to make way into all four models! As with every Apple event, September can’t get here fast enough!
Apple’s mixed reality headset has been in the works for quite some time now, and a couple of months ago it became apparent that the lightweight VR headset will be coming in 2022, with the Apple Glasses to follow soon after. On the flip side, the iPhone 13 is destined to arrive this fall, and like all times it is already the topic of interest in the tech circles. While iPhone 13 and the Apple VR headset cannot be launched in the same given timeframe – still it doesn’t deter imaginative designers from mustering up how the two products will look together.
ConceptsiPhone has created a render of the two upcoming devices by Apple and mashed them together in a video dubbed iPhone 13 VR for creative writer’s delight. The VR headset is open to any imagination possible, and the folks over at ConceptsiPhone have taken that opportunity to show the world how the mixed reality headset will be like. It looks plush (after all it’s Apple) and is in sync with the design principles Apple has put in place for the headset – comfort and lightweight aesthetics. The strap looks reassuring as far as ergonomics go while the padding around the viewable area ensures utmost comfort.
To be honest, more than the VR headset, I’m more intrigued by the iPhone 13 design. The concept shown here retains the iPhone 12 Pro’s DNA for the most part of it, and when you have a look at the rear camera module, it’s fresh nostalgia. The camera bump looks so strikingly similar to the newly launched Xiaomi Mi 11 Ultra flagship. Yes, I’m talking about the secondary display that’s actually the same OLED display as on the Mi Band 5 (smart move by Xiaomi) to show notifications, act as a viewfinder or music player widget. The camera module takes up the upper third real estate space on the back of the phone with a four-camera sensor setup accompanied by the squarish secondary screen looking much like the Apple Watch. Since Xiaomi didn’t shy away from making the smart move to use Mi Band 5 as the secondary display, nothing’s stopping me from believing that Apple could also salvage the Apple Watch display for the same on their phone.
While Xiaomi made the leap to this unique rear setup, I doubt Apple would make the same move as long as the whole smartphone industry doesn’t – sway that way. The kind of user-base Apple has, they wouldn’t want to have the distraction of a secondary screen when their phone is turned upside down for digital detox. Apart from showing notifications or other secondary controls, the screen is too small for any interactive space to make a thumping statement for it to be there. Anyways, the concept looks interesting and another interesting story for netizens to have an endless discussion on!
A smartphone is one thing that all of us rely on for most (if not all) tasks during the day, and the increasing screen size makes it a tad difficult to use in some situations. On those lines, having a phone that can change form depending on the occasion, sounds like a novelty. OPPO has teamed up with Japanese design studio nendo (founded by Oki Sato) to present a radical three-fold phone concept at the 4th China International Industrial Design Expo (CIIDE) that has this year’s theme as “New Designs, New Trends, New Momentum.”
Dubbed as the slide-phone, the motive of the design is to pursue “a comfortable relationship between people and their products through a human-centric approach to design.” Adapting a caterpillar-like moniker for the folding mechanism, the concept phone unfolds to a 7-inch screen with a slim profile, that’s wider screen real estate than most we’ve seen so far. When unfolded to the first fold it reveals the 1.5-inch screen area for basic notifications or functions like music player controls, call history, or more. The second fold reveals the 3.15-inch screen space for clicking photos, video calls, or playing games. Third and the final fold reveals the full widescreen for multitasking, taking panoramic photos, or playing games with an on-screen controller on each side. It even comes with a stylus for professionals, like the one on the Galaxy Note 20 series.
The positioning of buttons on the sides is such that they permit multiple actions depending on the positioning of the folded form. Putting the phone in mute, toggling volume up or down, and changing the filters while taking photos – all can be one with these buttons at your disposal. The interesting looking can be used in a partially open position when it is slightly bent – a new possibility for use, perhaps. The idea looks promising just like the Galaxy Z Fold 3 concept, and the conventional Apple foldable iPhone concept. One major advantage here is the slim form factor and the flexibility of use, just like that of the OPPO X 2021 rollable smartphone concept. Like all of these concept phones, the slide-phone is a desirable one, but will it see fruition anytime soon, is anybody’s guess!
TCL and LG have been teasing the idea of an extendable display on smartphones for some time, and now, we finally get to see a working prototype courtesy of a third brand. Today’s Inno Day 2020 event unveiled the Oppo X 2021 concept smartphone, which...
Vivo is not new to innovation in mobile camera technology. After having surprised the industry with the pop-up selfie camera, and a phone with dual elevating front cameras; the Chinese OEM has gone a step further to introduce a concept phone with a pop-up selfie camera module that can be removed from the body of the smartphone. This conceptual, interactive, and intuitive camera opens up a whole new range of multi-angle photography previously unseen with smartphone cameras.
IFEA Camera Mobilephone, as Vivo calls its concept smartphone, comes with a detachable front camera module called the IFEA. A user can detach the rectangular camera from the phone once it has completely popped out of its housing. IFEA can then be used wirelessly in any setting while being controlled with the smartphone from a distance. Vivo says the camera can also be voice-controlled to click and record. Furthermore, it can be attached to objects – as demonstrated in the video – to even a dog collar for your pooch’s first-person Instagram-worthy shots. From how it appears, the IFEA concept has a built-in battery and probably connects to the smartphone via Bluetooth. This we believe since the phone receives instant notification in case the user walks beyond a stipulated distance from the detached camera module. And the possibilities? Those are limited only by your imagination! While we agree smartphone photography is reaching all new heights, this detachable design lets you literally redefine your relationship with your phone and your camera. Place it on a table for a selfie, attach it to a holder and use it as an action camera, or make it a point of view camera from your pet’s collar – as we said, the only limitation is your imagination!
IFEA Camera Mobilephone is the brainchild of designer Dai Nairen. For its endless possibilities and out-of-the-box design, this concept for Vivo has won the Red Dot Design Award 2020. This is definitely an interesting idea any mobile photography aficionado would want to lay their hands-on, but will it see the light of the day is just anybody’s guess at this moment. Vivo is however hopeful of evolving the potential use of the IFEA in commercial phones, changing the way we capture the world around us!
Now that we're well into 2020, it's about time Vivo gave us its annual update on the APEX concept line which, in its past two generations, had given us a taste of what was to come in the smartphone world -- namely in-display fingerprint reader, pop-u...
YD has always had a large focus on concepts. The only way to pave the future, I believe, is to conceptualize, and we’ve seen so many products develop only years after the concepts did. So as far as they go, conceptual designs pave the way for real-world products, and they’ll always have their place on YD. Having said that, there’s no observing conceptual designs without stumbling across those made by Jonas Daehnert, or as the internet calls him, Phone Designer. Jonas’ conceptual phones range from pretty-well-chalked-out to tongue-in-cheek… although some of his conceptual designs feature rather logical details based off rumors, brought to life by his photorealistic rendering skills. We had a chance to have a word with Jonas, delving into his process, passion for phones, and what he designs apart from them. We’ve even taken a look at some of his phones we’ve featured on YD.
Yanko Design:Hey Jonas! Big fan! Tell us a little about yourself, your background, what you do…
Jonas Daehnert: Hey! My name is Jonas Daehnert, I’m a 31-year-old designer from Germany. In 2007 I started studying product design at the Bauhaus University Weimar. During this time I learned how to develop and design products. But, of course, even out of school, learning continues. Currently, I work as a freelance product and concept designer. Sometimes I design new product concepts for companies or other design agencies, sometimes I visualize their products for packaging, advertising or for presentations, like MWC in Barcelona. In my free time, I’m a natural born geek.
Daehnert’s Leather Phone imagines an era where phones are flexible, so a leather construction provides a beautifully premium clad.
YD:How and when did you venture into the “concept phone” domain?
JD: In addition to studying, I founded a video game development studio with a friend, 9 years ago. He was, and still is, an excellent computer scientist and I was able to design the graphics, sounds and game mechanics. We did a good job. But even in 2010/11, it was hard to get attention, especially when you developed apps for Windows Phone 7. To increase our downloads we were looking for a way to advertise our apps more effectively. Then I came up with the idea to promote our apps on fictional devices. As chance would have it, Microsoft revealed their first Surface devices in June 2012. One week later we presented our games on the new fictional “Surface Phone”. I’m really proud of it, because it was my first phone concept and people really liked it. We got a lot of attention. It was also the birth of the Surface Phone myth. From that point on, I started developing phone concepts in my free time.
The Surface Phone was Jonas’ first concept phone, modeled off the Surface Tablet that released in 2012.
YD:Softwares! What do you use to model and render?
JD: Like a lot of product designers I use Rhino 3D for modeling and Keyshot 7 Pro for rendering. Both applications are relatively lightweight, versatile, affordable, and easy to learn — but hard to master. They work perfectly together.
A poke at the #bendgate controversy surrounding the iPhone 6 launch
YD:How do you start with your concepts? Do you follow the rumor-mill?
JD: My first concepts just followed the rumors and as a product designer it is always a good exercise to work on fictional things for companies you have never worked for. It’s like a role playing game. You analyze their design philosophy and create new products for them, without restrictions or limitations. It’s just a typical design process with a lot of research, sketching and failures. But in the last two years I stepped back to just do some smaller stuff on Twitter, because these days I don’t see any advantage to designing smartphones under a false flag. Most companies became boring, predictable giants. The biggest topics in the last six month were notches, great cameras and the disappearance of the headphone jack. That’s it. I would like to go further and design my own visions under my own concept brand. For nearly a decade I’ve called myself Phone Designer. This doesn’t mean that I’m only focused on phones, though. Currently I’m working on a laptop concept, which will be totally unique.
The Lumia 940 was built on rumors and these incredibly realistic renders probably circulated more than the actual photos!
YD:Share some of your tips for photo-realistic renders!
JD: Of course for every render scene the quality of the 3D model, its details, textures and materials are important. But even more important is the arrangement of the 3D models, the camera and light settings. Many 3D artists make the mistake of using very low focal lengths and aggressive viewing angles in their camera settings. As a result, lots of renderings are distorted and the original character of the product is destroyed. Be more conservative in terms of camera settings and spend more time developing a sophisticated light setting to push the product characteristics. Having some knowledge about photography is really helpful, too.
The Pixel concept actually used Google’s brand colors as product lighting, creating a beautiful atmosphere for the render!
YD:Favorite phone of all time? What phone do you own?
JD: Definitely my first phone, a C35i by Siemens. It is an extremely durable phone with two weeks of battery life. And it still works, after 18 years. I’ve spent a long time with Windows Phone and I’m still a fan of the Lumia phones, especially its Fabula Design language. But Windows Phone is dead, so I switched to Android. Actually I use an old Moto G4 — it’s enough for my needs. I prefer purism and simplicity.
Jonas bid farewell to the Windows Phone in a rather humorous way. It’s pretty comical how the Windows Mobile tile-UI fits into the crucifix design too!
YD:Do you ever plan to make concept wearables like smartwatches or VR headsets, etc?
JD: I already did. A couple of years ago I designed a wristband that could have been a product by Microsoft, before they launched their first Microsoft Band. The similarities were surprising. I also created a fictional VR headset, the Google Nexus Glasses. For a real client, I’m currently designing a wearable, which will be used in the sport of boxing. It’s not released yet.
Jonas dropped his own version of Microsoft’s Band in 2014, when the watch market had just begun developing with the Apple Watch.
YD:Lastly, one thing you really wish you could change about the smartphone industry.
JD: There are over 3000 smartphone brands in the world. Each company should produce less devices per year and focus on durability, their software services and updates. Planned obsolescence generates the money. This is a problem. That’s why I really appreciate Google’s Project Treble, which tries to change the current situation. We should also think about our material choices. Using aluminum or glass for the backsides of the phones requires a lot of energy and resources that are not recyclable. We should use less glue and more screws. We have to prevent the garbage from landing in Africa. The whole industry has to change its attitude towards pollution. Finally, as a geek I say: We need more battery life.
(I couldn’t agree with you more, Jonas…)
Daehner’s Spinner Phone, also from 2014 (not inspired by the fidget spinner), explores a rotating camera module machined in metal, allowing you to click incredible photos and selfies… using the same camera.
To check out more of Jonas’ work on YD, click here.
Sony had such potential! They were masters in the camera domain anyway, and with the Walkman they ruled the music domain too. Sony could have truly created the most loved smartphone, but alas!
The Xperia Walkman by Casmir Valeri just goes to show how Sony could have created a smartphone that was at the crux of great imaging and great audio. The Xperia Walkman’s wedge design may not appeal to all, but my eyes are set on that beautiful jagged mini jog-dial where one would expect the home button. In some ways, I would expect this the be the most direct evolution of an mp3 player like the iPod. They too had jog-dials beneath the screen for ease-of-access. We all know what an interaction dream they used to be for users!
The phone’s wedge shape isn’t just a meaningless design detail. It actually comes with an audio dock that has a reverse curve. Dock the mobile into the top of the speaker unit and the design is completed. This beautiful connection also pairs the two gadgets, turning your phone into a boombox… because if you own a Walkman phone, you’re obviously the music maestro!
The Nokia Note is a concept phone that integrates a music player within its body. Just like a mamma roo and her joey, the Windows Phone 8 phablet sports cool specs like measuring 5.5 inches diagonal and a 1280 x 768 pixel resolution with 1080p. An integrated stylus and the detachable Nokia music player on the back, give it the added edge. Looks like there are still some Nokia fans out there who want to give the device another chance.
Designer: Mohammad Mahdi Azimi
- Yanko Design Timeless Designs - Explore wonderful concepts from around the world! Yanko Design Store - We are about more than just concepts. See what's hot at the YD Store! (Nokia Love was originally posted on Yanko Design)
Now that we're well into 2020, it's about time Vivo gave us its annual update on the APEX concept line which, in its past two generations, had given us a taste of what was to come in the smartphone world -- namely in-display fingerprint reader, pop-u...
