Vivo Patents Phone with Rotatable Physical Keyboard

Jul. 18, 2020

Vivo is arguably one of the most innovative Chinese smartphone brands in the industry right now. The company introduced the world’sfirst smartphone with an in-display fingerprint scannerand even launched theVivo X50 Prowith a gimbal camera. Now, a new patent hints what Vivo is currently working on.

As per the patent filed at China’s Intellectual Property Administration (CNIPA), the smartphone giant has envisioned aphone that has a rotating bottom. Vivo filed the patent on the 10th of March and CNIPA approved the patent yesterday.

One side of the bottom portion features the screen, while theother has physical keyboard buttons. Going by the patent images, the phone will have theability to let users rotate the bottom modulebased on their needs.

For instance, this will be convenient when you would like to watch videos on your phone. One could easily hide the keyboard to the rear side and enjoy an immersive experience. On the other hand, the keyboard will be useful for sending text messages.

Apart from the rotate mechanism, the patent image hints at triple rear cameras, the usual power and volume buttons, and a selfie camera, presumably an in-display implementation.

With all that said, it is worth keeping in mind that a patent doesn’t necessarily mean that the company is actively working to prototype units. If this becomes a reality, it will be a dream come true to all the Blackberry fans out there, especially since the company hasended its partnership with TCL.

So, would you prefer a phone with a rotatable keyboard? Share your thoughts with us in the comments.

Subin writes about consumer tech, software, and security. He secretly misses the headphone jack while pretending he’s better off with the wireless freedom.