Xiaomi just gave its next foldable, the 18 Fold, a public face five days before the China launch, and the company is calling the shape a mid-fold. Official video and stills from Lu Weibing’s Weibo posts show a shorter, wider inward folder finished in Nishino Red, with large rounded corners, thin bezels, and a horizontal pill-shaped camera bar that holds three lenses plus an LED flash. Folded, Xiaomi says the body is about the size of a passport and light enough for one-handed use. Opened, a 7.58-inch inner panel takes over, cut to a wider aspect ratio meant for split apps and video rather than a stretched copy of last year’s tall Mix Fold layout
Razer spent years shipping clip-on phone pads that played well and still needed a tote. Prio is the first of a new ultra-portable line, a $99.99 USB-C controller that folds to 107 by 67 by 23 millimeters and 101 grams, roughly a credit card’s footprint and a bar of soap’s weight. One twist unlocks the two halves. They swing open around a silicone band, a phone up to seven inches seats in the gap, and the layout that was hiding inside becomes a pair of analog sticks, a real four-way D-pad, face buttons, bumpers, and triggers. iPhone 17 Pro Max and Galaxy S26 Ultra both fit. So do most slim and medium cases, helped by three rubber pads in the box and removable locking brackets.
Original Nintendo DS handhelds from late 2004 keep showing up in repair piles with hinges that snap and shells that powder at the slightest pressure. Owners who stored one in a drawer for two decades often discover the damage only when they try to swap a dead screen or tighten a loose screw. Metallic paint Nintendo laid over the ABS plastic appears to be reacting with the case itself. Yellow or greenish stains leak out around edges, button wells, and hinge roots. Force the clamshell open and the plastic flakes instead of flexing.
HopTo’s first machine, Hop-1, looks like a small quadcopter that grew a pogo stick. That extra leg is the whole argument. Continuous flight means the motors fight gravity every second the machine is aloft. Hop-1 spends most of its trip bouncing on a passive spring, so the rotors only top up energy lost on each landing and fully take over when a gap, a wall, or a sudden climb actually requires flight. HopTo puts hopping energy use at about a quarter of continuous flight. Stay on the ground as much as possible, and only fly when you have to.
