Five Unusual Smartphones of Early 2026: Three Screens, Active Cooling, and a Projector

Galaxy Z TriFold - the first three-fold smartphone by Samsung

The Samsung Galaxy Z TriFold is the first Samsung smartphone with a three-section foldable screen. The device went on sale on January 30, 2026, and immediately became the company's most expensive smartphone. The price will be at the end; it won't make you happy.

So, in its folded state, it is an ordinary smartphone with an external display. When partially folded, the screen becomes wider than that of a regular smartphone, and when fully opened, it turns into a large display of about 10 inches, practically a tablet. This format is convenient for working with multiple applications, documents, and videos, where a large screen is needed.

The construction turned out to be complex. In the unfolded state, the body is very thin, and engineers had to figure out how to make it sturdier. Additionally, the hinge mechanism is reinforced to withstand constant folding. At the same time, Samsung deliberately refused to support a stylus: despite the large screen, the device is not aimed at drawing or taking notes but at working with interfaces and content.

In terms of hardware, the Galaxy Z TriFold is a full-fledged flagship. It is equipped with a top mobile processor, a large amount of RAM, and a fast storage unit. The camera module is also flagship, focusing on versatility rather than experiments. The battery with increased capacity is designed to power several screen modes at once.

Specifications:

• Form Factor: three-fold smartphone (dual hinge),

• External Screen: 6.5″ Dynamic AMOLED 2X, 120 Hz,

• Main Screen: about 10″ Dynamic AMOLED 2X, 120 Hz,

• Processor: Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Elite for Galaxy,

• RAM: 16 GB,

• Storage: 512 GB or 1 TB,

• Battery: 5600 mAh,

• Charging: wired, wireless, and reverse,

• Cameras: main 200 MP + additional modules,

• Protection: IP48,

• Weight: about 309 g,

• OS: Android with One UI interface.

The recommended price is about $2,899. Major Russian retailers do not have it yet, but smaller sellers are offering the smartphone for an outrageous 460,000 rubles. Quite ridiculous, of course. Would you buy it?

8849 Tank X — rugged smartphone with built-in Full HD projector

A frankly niche smartphone, where the main element is the projector. And it's not a symbolic one, but a full-fledged one, with a resolution of 1920×1080 and adequate brightness for indoor use. You can place the phone on a table, turn on the projector, and project an image onto the wall without external devices. The idea is not new, but they promise a truly bright projector here, not just a pale imitation.

It uses DLP technology, with autofocus and trapezoidal correction. It’s suitable for videos, presentations, and any scenario where a large screen is needed but isn't available. As a portable solution — a workable option.

Otherwise, the Tank X is a typical "rugged phone" focused on autonomy and survivability. The body is massive, with maximum protection against water and dust, and inside — a huge battery. The camera module is also atypical: in addition to the usual modules, there is a separate night vision camera. The phone is clearly designed for specific scenarios — travel, field conditions, work outside the office.

Specifications:

• Processor: MediaTek Dimensity 8200,

• RAM: 16 GB,

• Storage: 512 GB + microSD slot,

• Screen: 6.78″, 2460×1080, 120 Hz,

• Projector: built-in DLP, 1920×1080, about 220 lumens,

• Cameras: main 50 MP, wide-angle 8 MP, night vision 64 MP with IR illumination, front 50 MP,

• Battery: 17,600 mAh,

• Charging: fast, up to 120 W + reverse charging,

• Protection: IP68 / IP69K,

• Additional: NFC, fingerprint scanner,

• Connectivity: 5G, Wi-Fi 6, Bluetooth 5.4,

• Dimensions and weight: about 180 × 92 × 32 mm, approximately 750 g.

Tank X was introduced in early 2026. Sales are expected in the first quarter of 2026, and the price depends on the region.

RedMagic 11 Air — gaming smartphone with active cooling

The focus here is not on design or camera, but on stable performance in games. The main feature of the RedMagic 11 Air is the built-in active cooling system with a fan. This allows for longer maintenance of high CPU frequencies without overheating and throttling.

The second important detail is the 7,000 mAh battery. This is a large capacity for a gaming smartphone. Fast charging of up to 120 W is supported, so even the large battery charges relatively quickly.

The screen of the 11 Air is also optimized for gaming: an OLED panel with a diagonal of 6.85 inches, a refresh rate of 144 Hz, and high responsiveness. The front camera is hidden under the screen to avoid obstructing the image, and there are touch gaming triggers on the sides of the body that can be assigned to actions in games.

Specifications:

• Processor: Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Elite,

• Graphics: Adreno (part of SoC),

• RAM: 12 or 16 GB LPDDR5X,

• Storage: 256 or 512 GB UFS 4.1,

• Screen: 6.85″ OLED, 2688×1216, 144 Hz,

• Battery: 7000 mAh,

• Charging: fast, up to 120 W,

• Cooling: active, with a fan,

• Cameras: main 50 MP, wide-angle 8 MP, front 16 MP (under the screen),

• Additional: touch gaming triggers, RGB lighting, under-screen fingerprint scanner,

• Connectivity: 5G, Wi-Fi 7, Bluetooth 5.4.

RedMagic 11 Air was presented in January 2026. Sales started in February 2026, with prices depending on memory size. 12 GB + 256 GB will cost $529. And 16 GB + 512 GB will be $629.

AYANEO Pocket Play — a gaming smartphone with a slide-out controller

AYANEO Pocket Play is another gaming smartphone. But it's not about active cooling; the feature is different. When the screen slides up, physical controls appear underneath — a D-pad, ABXY buttons, shoulder triggers, and two multifunctional touch blocks. This control scheme is closer to portable consoles than to a regular touchscreen. It closely resembles the Sony Xperia Play.

The Pocket Play has a large screen of about 6.8 inches with a resolution of around 2400×1080 and a refresh rate of 165 Hz, which helps in dynamic games. The display is designed without any cutouts for the camera, so nothing interferes with the display and gameplay.

Specific details about the cameras, memory, battery, and sales start date have not been announced yet, but the platform is known — the device is built on the MediaTek Dimensity 9300, making it close in performance level to top Android smartphones. The main focus here is on gaming and the ability to "play directly from the phone" without external gamepads. That is, there are no super cameras here, but it is powerful.

Specifications:

• Form factor: smartphone with a slide-out gaming controller,

• Screen: about 6.8″, OLED, 2400×1080, 165 Hz,

• Processor: MediaTek Dimensity 9300,

• Control: D-pad, ABXY buttons, shoulder triggers, two touch blocks,

• System: Android,

• Main scenario: mobile gaming and emulation.

AYANEO Pocket Play was showcased at the end of 2025. The manufacturer is preparing the device for release in 2026, but the exact date for the start of sales and prices have not yet been announced.

Motorola Razr Fold — the first book-style foldable flagship from Motorola

The Motorola Razr Fold is a new foldable smartphone from the company, unveiled in January 2026. It does not resemble the old Razr flip phones. Here, the screen folds like a "book," revealing a large almost tablet-sized display inside and a regular screen outside.

The main feature of the Razr Fold is its dual-screen format: when folded, it has an external display, and when opened, it reveals an 8.1-inch main screen with a 2K resolution and a 120 Hz refresh rate. The large screen is designed for multitasking, video viewing, and interfaces that are more conveniently used on a larger panel.

The model is equipped with a top-tier Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Gen 5 processor and 16 GB of RAM, placing it in the flagship category. Memory and storage options may vary, including choices with 256 GB and 512 GB of storage. The phone runs on Android 16.

The cameras on the Razr Fold are also quite good: a triple main system of 50 MP (wide, ultra-wide, and telephoto with 3× zoom), as well as two front-facing cameras — one on the external screen and one on the internal screen. The support for the Moto Pen Ultra stylus adds convenience for drawing and taking notes on the large screen.

Specifications:

• Form factor: book-style foldable smartphone,

• External screen: about 6.6″ OLED, 120 Hz,

• Main screen: 8.1″ OLED, 2480×2200 (≈2K), 120 Hz,

• Processor: Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Gen 5,

• RAM: 16 GB,

• Storage: 256–512 GB (possibly up to 1 TB),

• Main camera: 3× 50 MP (wide, ultra-wide, telephoto 3× zoom),

• Front cameras: 32 MP (external screen), 20 MP (internal screen),

• System: Android 16,

• Additional: stylus support, side fingerprint scanner, stereo speakers,

• Connectivity: 5G, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, NFC,

• Body protection: IP48 rating.

The Razr Fold was officially announced in January 2026. The start of sales is planned for the summer of this year.