Are foldable smartphones possible? Not the ones like the flipping phones back in the days, but a smartphone that could be bend in half along with the screen. It seems crazy to even consider that idea, but then again the idea of having a touchscreen was also crazy; and it worked.

HSBC analysts have predicted that Samsung will be the first to release such device, claiming that Samsung have always had that goal in mind few years ago; with a leaked presentation slide plans to release the first foldable smart devices by 2018. Here's what HSBC speculates:-

Just before the weekend last week, Samsung Malaysia Electronics held a 3S Smart Service contest for its service centre (SVCs) and call centre (CCC) staffs nationwide. The 3S represents Samsung’s customer service philosophy and motto, which are speed, solution and satisfaction.

The purpose of the contest was to serve as an ideal platform for customer service officers to improve their customer service skills, product and technical knowledge to continuously strive and to respond to the customers’ needs with top class quality services .

Last week, images and tech specs of the Samsung Galaxy On5 and Galaxy On7 appeared in the company’s website but was quickly taken down for whatever reasons. But it’s back on the surface again in China’s Samsung website, this time it’s pretty safe to say that the two new upcoming products are official. Strangely, only the On7’s tech specs are fully shown officially.

The Samsung Galaxy On5 and On7 (manual only) appeared on the company’s website recently causing a stir with images, tech specs and others. However, it has been taken down already. But here’s what we know of the On5 tech specs so far:-

• 1.5GB RAM 
• 8GB of total storage and a microSD slot
• 5-inch display with 720p resolution
• 142.3 x 72.1 x 8.5mm 
• 8MP rear camera and a 5MP front camera, 1080p video recording
• dual-SIM phone (microSIMs)
• LTE connectivity (TDD and FDD).
• Android (version unknown)
• 2600mAh battery (removable) 

Samsung has some big plans for it's future smartphones as it may be offering 4K displays, 16MP ISOCELL cameras and 64-bit processors for Samsung smartphones debuting after 2014. While the 64-bit processor and 4K display news looks to be sourced from Samsung itself the 16MP ISOCELL camera news looks to be confirmed from Korean media. According to Samsung they are currently developing 4K Ultra HD resolution displays for smartphones with 3840 x 2160 pixel resolutions. These 800+ppi smartphones could come in 2015 while the other planned features such as the 16MP ISOCELL cameras and 64-bit Exynos processors could appear in 2014 model Samsung smartphones. Tech specs and details about the 16MP ISOCELL camera includes the fact that it may include wide dynamic range and auto focus but it will still be the standard 1.12 micron pixel size. Also, there is no mention of any anti-shake or optical image stabilization (OIS) features for the camera sensor as earlier reported but things could still change when next year rolls around.

In line with their flexible displays, Samsung recently demoed their new flexible battery technology. Rather than create a bendable battery in the form of a cable Samsung are using a non-liquid electrolyte for their batteries which while being not a liquid still follows the shape of whatever object or case you put it into. This sort of battery in a pouch offers even more versatility as you can now have the battery in anything with some space. The other cool thing about it is that due to the nature of the material it cannot overheat and start a fire even under the most extreme conditions. No details on pricing or Malaysia release dates but we should see some models offering the new Samsung battery technology soon (or next year). 

While initially Microsoft was rumoured to have approached HTC about loading Windows Phone on Android, it appears that HTC wasn't the only one Microsoft talked to. According to reports, Microsoft have also approached Samsung and Huawei with Windows Phone OS for smartphones and Windows RT for tablet for free as an incentive. They have also supposedly added on compensation for the required adaptation costs. While none of the above parties have really confirmed anything, a rumoured 12.1-inch Samsung Galaxy Tab which can dual-boot between Windows RT and Android is supposedly on the way. Tech specs for this device include very high pixel resolutions, a super thin plastic chassis made to look like metal (probably a chrome finish) and is supposedly very fast. Most of this info comes from Russion blogger Eldar Murtazin, who has mostly been accurate when it comes to Nokia - Microsoft related rumours. However, he was wrong about Tizen so take this rumour again with a pinch of salt. No Malaysia release dates or pricing just yet though.