Could this be the real successor to the notch?

For better or worse, the notch has dominated the smartphone industry for over a year now. Starting with the Essential PH-1 and made oh-so-popular by the iPhone X, the notch in a smartphone display has allowed the status bar to be pushed up beside the camera leading to more screen real estate. Manufacturers have been strongly trying to market this technology as "edge-to-edge" display as well as touting their new "screen-size".

To say the notch has been controversial would be an understatement. Some say it does allow more vertical space while some argue it has not offered any advantages in usable space and thus only been a detriment to aesthetics. It appears that only Apple has been able to say they made a good use of the notch.

We all knew the notch trend would not last forever as manufacturers are certainly striving for the pinnacle of design: the all-screen phone. While Vivo and Oppo have designed a concept for it, many are hesitant to put their trust back in moving parts.

It looks like we may have the answer to what 2019 will bring in terms of design.

Twitter and Weibo user "Ice Universe", an individual who appears to be in the know of yet-unreleased information, says the next trend in design will be the open-hole camera. In images posted, he details how the display will completely cover the front of the device with just a hole for the camera; he even posted an image to survey desire for left, center, or right alignment.

Source: Ice Universe, Twitter

Personally, I can see the appeal, but I doubt the veracity. Firstly, these designs would require Apple, Huawei, and even Google to rethink their front camera system. As Google uses two front cameras, there would need to be two holes. Likewise, Apple would need to rethink their FaceID system and determine if it would be effective beneath the display. Secondly, the design would also require someone other than Apple to find a way to fold the OLED display to eliminate the dreaded chin that has plagued Android phones since the introduction of the notch. That seems unlikely for now.

Would this concept be great? Possibly. The gold star for design is likely to go to the first manufacturer that can move the camera and sensors underneath the display and blacken the pixels over the camera when a picture is needed. A device that can do this while folding the display will be the first to be able to claim a full edge-to-edge display, but we are not there yet.

More than likely, the trend for 2019 appears to be a push toward fold-able devices, not open hole cameras.