Foldable smartphones are the beginning of a new era in the smartphone world. While Samsung and Huawei are already part of the foldable market, Google could try its hands on foldables this year. Moreover, Chinese OEMs like OPPO, Vivo, and Xiaomi are also said to introduce their folding phones in 2021. The latest rumor says that OPPO is prepping to launch its foldable phone soon.

‘Green factory’ refers to OPPO

The development comes from a tipster who goes by the name Digital Chat Station (directly translated) on Weibo. They claim that OPPO is expected to introduce its first foldable smartphone in Q2, which starts in April and ends in June. If you remember, OPPO showcased a rollable smartphone last year. However, the upcoming phone is not rollable, and the showcased device isn’t coming anytime soon. For the unaware, the OPPO X features a flexible OLED display that measures 6.7-inch. It can roll out via a dynamic scrolling frame, and you get 7.4-inches of screen real estate. It is unrolled by using a side button on which you have to swipe to extend and retract the flexible panel.

OPPO foldable smartphone

OPPO prototype showcased in 2019. Via- Brian Shen on Weibo

There is no information on what kind of foldable phone OPPO is planning to launch. However, OPPO also showed us a foldable prototype back in 2019. The company’s Vice President Brian Shen posted a couple of pictures on Weibo that gave us our first look at a Mate X-inspired OPPO foldable smartphone prototype.

That being said, OPPO has never shown a prototype of a clamshell. Hence, we can expect the upcoming foldable to be a phone that transforms into a small tablet like the Galaxy Z Fold 2 and Huawei Mate X. It seems like OPPO has managed to convert the prototype into an actual product, which it plans to launch soon.