Samsung's latest foldable device brainwave comes in the form of a large device with two folding panels that close in the middle of the phone Additionally, there is space for a stylus

The so-called Samsung Galaxy Z Fold Tab comes from a Samsung patent found by LetsGoDigital, which shows off a foldable device with an attached S Pen stylus If foldable tablets are going to catch on, this seems like a good way to do it

The name Galaxy Z Fold Tab comes from LGD's idea of the most logical name Samsung would use The patent itself bears the uncomfortably mundane title "Foldable Electronic Device Including Electronic Pen"

As shown in these renderings by Sarang Sheth of Yanko Design, the S Pen is attached magnetically to either end of the tablet When folded, the S Pen fits tightly between the two edges, so there is little chance of the S Pen coming off

LetsGoDigital notes that there are practical advantages to tri-folding this S-folding devices, such as the one Samsung Display recently showed off, can be quite thick when closed, but this tri-fold style can remain thin even when closed However, portability may not be as important for foldable tablets, as they are not devices that are used regularly on the move like foldable cell phones

For Samsung, however, it appears that one fold is not enough The patent indicates that these panels can be folded backward or forward This means that in addition to opening and closing the tablet completely, there is also a more compact mode that uses only the center portion of the screen

Another patent filed by Samsung and found by LGD discusses how such foldable devices can be used The patent mentions opening multiple app windows at once, allowing the interface to adapt to whether the display is open or closed, and allowing the user to swap the position of the apps at will This sounds similar to existing software on current folding phones and the recently leaked Split UI operating system designed with flexible devices in mind

Unless Samsung really shuts up, this design won't be hitting store shelves anytime soon We expect the next generation of foldable phones, the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 3 and Galaxy Z Flip 3, to arrive in late summer or early fall However, according to the leaks we have seen so far, these devices look a lot like their predecessors

This is not to say that there are no new features to look forward to in these phones; the Galaxy Z Fold 3 is expected to feature S Pen compatibility and an under-display camera to take full advantage of the large display, and the Galaxy Z Flip 3 is expected to have a regular user The price may be lowered to make it more accessible to regular users

Given that the foldable market is still small right now, both of these phones are very likely to be recommendations in our Best Foldable Phones ranking