Official look at OnePlus Open focuses on newly designed hinge

OnePlus gives an official look at an early build of the OnePlus Open through an exclusive interview that shows off the company’s revamped foldable hinge build and “gapless” design.

The OnePlus Open is set to be the company’s first foldable phone from the OnePlus brand. The company has prior experience in foldable through its Oppo lineup, namely in the Oppo Find N and N2, but nothing as of yet under the flagship branding.

In a sit-down interview, Unbox Therapy is given a very early model of the OnePlus Open, complete with carefully placed paper to block the view of the camera and other physical aspects that might give away any close-guarded information. On the other end, Pete Lau goes over the details surrounding the upcoming device and what that entails.

According to Pete, OnePlus retains over 35 patents surrounding elements of the hinge alone, which is, of course, one of the biggest challenges in developing foldable phones. The OnePlus Open will house a gapless design, much like the Oppo Find N2. This new foldable, however, has 31 fewer components in comparison.

In the video, Pete has Lew close the Open with a piece of paper tucked inside. According to Pete Lau, the gapless design is what makes that possible. To an outside viewer, it looks more like a case of strong magnets laid across the outer edges of the inner display.

In any case, the video shows the early build of OnePlus Open from a few key angles. Both closed and open, the build looks sharp, even though it’s clearly unfinished. The “gapless” design is clearly shown, but the inner screen bezels look rather thick and are raised far higher than other foldables we’re used to. It should be interesting to see if this makes it to the finished design.

We’ve already seen the device land in the public’s hands, which shows off the device uninhibited by paper coverings. The OnePlus Open is expected to be announced on October 19, just two weeks after Google’s hardware event on October 4. We’re expecting to see some high-end specs in OnePlus’s first foldable, like a Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 and an impressive camera array.

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