ZTE Combines Essential, iPhone X Notches In New Smartphone Patent

Earlier this month a concept design for ZTE’s Iceberg phone emerged online. The device quickly gained a lot of attention for sporting two display notches (top and bottom). However, it looks like the Chinese phone maker is also working on another smartphone that features two notches inspired by the display notches found on the iPhone X and the Essential Phone.

On Saturday, it was found out that ZTE filed a smartphone patent with China’s State Intellectual Property Office (SIPO) back on Sept. 13, 2017. The leaked documentation revealed that the Chinese company seems to be working on another handset with dual display notches.

The first one to spot the patent was Dutch website Mobielkopen. According to the site, ZTE’s new concept phone has a top notch that‘s reminiscent of the one on the Essential Phone. Interestingly, it also has another notch at the bottom of the display. It’s easy to see that though the bottom notch is not as long as that of the iPhone X’s top notch, it may have been inspired by the latter in terms of its shape.

The notch atop ZTE’s new patented smartphone houses a selfie camera. On the other hand, the bottom notch appears to be housing a home button or a fingerprint reader of some sort. Mobielkopen says the bottom notch seems unnecessary because its purpose and advantage were not indicated in the patent application.

Gizmochina reports that ZTE may not be releasing the dual-notch smartphone anytime soon due to the sanctions imposed on the company by the United States government. If it does move forward with this project, the news outlet believes the phone could launch mid-2019 at the earliest. But it’s also worth pointing out that not all patents reach fruition. Some end up being scrapped, so it’s best to take the leaked patent with a grain of salt.

Meanwhile, ZTE’s Iceberg concept phone has two much longer top and bottom notches in comparison to the newly outed device. Iceberg also appears to be in the final stages of development since it was up for an award under the “Product” discipline category at the iF Design Award 2018.

“The ZTE Iceberg uses a seamless glass connection technique to combine two pieces of glass as one unibody, which makes the phone resemble a fragment of ice,” the phone’s description on the iF Design Award website reads. “The four corners of the phone are transparent to reveal the essential beauty of the glass material. The effect is beautiful and mysterious.”