This phone has a hidden pop-up wedge for the selfie camera to solve the iPhone-style notch problem
- An upcoming phone by Chinese phonemaker Oppo supposedly has a unique take on the pop-up selfie camera that's designed to hide the selfie camera when it's not in use.
- The camera pop-up is wedge-shaped, which looks less fragile than other popup selfie cameras.
- Hiding the selfie camera when it's not in use is the best way we've seen so far to keep a full-screen display without interruptions from an iPhone X-style notch or Samsung Galaxy S10-style camera cutout.
Photos of a smartphone called "Reno" from Chinese smartphone maker Oppo were leaked on Slashleaks, and it goes to show how smartphone makers are still innovating to give users a full-screen display and a selfie camera.
Indeed, there's no way to fully hide a selfie camera behind a screen, which has led companies like Apple, Samsung, and another dozen or so phonemakers to use a notch or display cutouts that let the selfie camera take photos.
The Oppo Reno has a unique wedge-shaped pop-up selfie camera:
Funnily enough, the wedge pop-up itself actually has a design element that looks like a notch, which you can see just to the top left of the selfie camera's flashlight.
At first, I thought it might work with a manual push mechanism to pop out or hide the selfie camera back into the Reno's body, but a recently leaked video on Slashleaks's YouTube channel of the Reno suggests it uses a mechanical mechanism:
It's an interesting idea, but I'd like to propose the ultimate challenge to smartphone makers: make a phone without a selfie camera at all for those who decidedly never take selfies. That way, those people can have their full-screen displays without notches, cutouts, or pop-up selfie cameras. But in the age of social media, that challenge might be too great for any smartphone maker to undertake.