Vivo Nex 2 Will Ditch Pop-Up Selfie Camera For Rear Secondary Screen

One of the most interesting smartphones to come out this year was the Vivo Nex, which arrived with a pop-up, front-facing camera and an all-screen design. Now, several leaks have suggested that the Vivo Nex 2 is on the way, but it will ditch the pop-up mechanism in favor of a secondary display on its back.

Tech YouTuber Mrwhostheboss recently published a video featuring a “mystery 2018 smartphone.” He showed off the device while it’s inside e glass casing to conceal the phone’s design and brand, but it’s widely believed that handset is the Vivo Nex 2. He said that the device comes with an all-screen design and a secondary display on its back. It’s also confirmed that the handset will have a set of triple rear cameras.

The secondary display on the back will be used for taking selfies. This also means that the triple rear cameras will be used for taking selfies and videos. This type of design is similar to the Nubia X. Putting a second screen on the back also makes it possible for the phone to have an all-screen design without a notch or any mechanical moving parts to house the front-facing camera.

The Vivo Nex 2 is also said to have a time-of-flight (ToF) camera. This means that one of the three cameras will have 3D-sensing capabilities, which could be used for improving photography and augmented reality by capturing depth information. The Verge was able to try out a prototype of Vivo’s 3D sensing camera earlier this year and it was capable of creating 3D models of a person’s head. The Oppo R17 Pro already comes with a ToF camera, while the rumored 5G model of the Samsung Galaxy S10 is also pegged to have one, as well.

The Vivo Nex 2 also features an RGB LED lighting effect, called the “Lunar Ring.” This lighting effect encircles the triple camera module. This feature will be used to show notifications when the device is placed facedown on a table.

So, why does everyone think this is the Vivo Nex 2? Earlier this week, a couple of photos showing a similar device was leaked on the Chinese website Weibo. Notable leaker Ben Geskin (@VenyaGeskin1) also shared a render showing the Vivo Nex 2 with the same set of hardware features.

Vivo hasn’t made any official announcements yet, but the Nex 2 is expected to launch sometime next month.