If Motorola is present at Mobile World Congress, it does not intend to make announcements of high-end smartphones there. The Lenovo brand is certainly unveiling some slim new features in Barcelona – Gorilla Glass will be applied to each of its future smartphones – but we imagine that the heir to the series The Edge 40 will be unveiled at the same time as its predecessor, that is to say in the spring, while future Razrs are expected by the summer.
However, the Catalan show is also an opportunity for the manufacturer to show its know-how through concepts. We remember the rollable screen smartphone shown at MWC 2023, and nicknamed Rizr. This year, it is a concept phone also using a flexible screen that the manufacturer unveils, but in a more original format. It is not entirely new, since it was made official at Tech World organized by Lenovo (the parent company of Motorola) in October 2023. The opportunity for us to bring it to wrist for a few moments.
Motorola’s wrist-smartphone, characteristics-wise, is a fairly classic model when kept in its flat form. It sports a 6.9-inch pOled panel, but its stretched ratio makes it a relatively narrow model. And it needs to be stretched, the idea being that it can wrap around the wrist. Obviously, it does not take the form of a complete bracelet, but “pinches” the arm. Motorola’s discovery lies in the method of attaching the device: all you need to do is wear a very classic Milanese mesh bracelet on your wrist, fitted with magnets, to which the smartphone clings firmly. It is only a concept: the manufacturer has understood that it is not a question of showing a bracelet that can act as a smartphone, but rather a smartphone that can be can worn on the wrist, to free one hand while viewing information on a large display. The use does not seem to be science fiction, all things considered, and the device could even occasionally replace a connected watch…
A smartphone to occasionally place on the wrist
We also wore the smartphone on our wrist. There is no shortage of technical difficulties: it was necessary to integrate batteries into a curved case, even though a battery can only be flat; the smartphone therefore integrates a multitude of them, placed side by side. We also had to take user comfort into account: the back of the device is covered in mesh, which does not make us forget the weight of the whole thing. We immediately see the limits of the exercise: the fabric gets dirty quickly, the multiple hinges which allow you to adjust the curvature of the screen are a little rigid and difficult to handle , and comfort for the user is very relative.
Software discoveries are associated with this format: a mini-screen mimicking the external panel of a Razr 40 Ultra when a certain curve is reached, even if the latter is very difficult to obtain, a “mode” tent” allowing two people to play face to face, a stand mode, etc. It all works, which is beautiful in itself, but using it all takes practice and a little patience. Without forgetting that, to place your smartphone on your wrist for a few moments, you should plan to permanently wear the bracelet which keeps it in place. In short, the wrist-smartphone is not destined to be marketed, at least not in this form, but it proves that we have not yet explored all the possibilities that screens offer. flexible, and their uses have yet to be invented. It also shows that Motorola, which joined Lenovo in 2014, has adopted the Chinese brand’s habit of designing technological concepts that are sometimes eccentric, but which remind us that it is still possible to surprise in a TV landscape. very homogeneous speech.