New Microsoft device can function as phone or tablet

Software giant Microsoft is planning to come up with a two-in-one foldable device supported by a flexible hinge that can transform from a phone to a tablet in seconds, the company said as it applied for a new patent.

In the patent, Microsoft describes the device - that aims to accomplish what a number of other companies, such as LG and Samsung, are already looking at - as smartphones with foldable screens that can open up into a more tablet-like experience.

The patent applied by Microsoft went public on Monday and it describes a foldable tablet supported by a flexible hinge.

When an average consumer makes a decision to buy a device, the size of the device becomes a primary consideration. A user may purchase a mobile device having a relatively small display to make phone calls, or text, and a larger display device such as a tablet to answer emails, browse the internet, and so on. Microsoft's new device can act both as a smartphone and a tablet, the company said in a statement.

Such a device would provide the portability of a smartphone along with the enhanced productivity of a larger screen, and when paired with Windows 10 on ARM would give Microsoft a significant competitive advantage over iOS and Android.

In this patent, Microsoft is describing a device that secures the plurality of housings to each other, permits the plurality of housings to rotate about an axis in relation to each other, and supports a continuous viewing area of the display device that extends across the plurality of housings and the flexible hinge structure, it said.

Samsung and LG are both reportedly launching their first foldable phone in the second half 2017.