Revenge of the clamshell: LG may be working on an Android flip phone

LG
Flipping hell

We see a lot of phone leak rumours on our beat, but this one has really got us talking: it's a retro-looking LG flip phone that seems to be running some version of Android.

If you've been pining for the old-fashioned form factor but want some modern software to go with it, this could be your dream handset. You can snap it shut with a flourish after calls as if it's 2005.

LG actually already has a clamshell phone on the market, but only in South Korea - the LG Wine Smart broke cover last September and you can't pick it up anywhere outside of LG's home country.

The good old days?

We don't know too much about this new phone apart from what's shown in the picture, which comes courtesy of @upleaks. Ice Cream Smart is the mooted name and the Android software looks very much like the OS running on LG's other handsets (albeit shrunk down to fit a smaller screen).

Last year's Wine Smart has a 1.2GHz quad-core processor, 1GB of RAM and a 3.5-inch 480 x 320 LCD display. There's also an 8-megapixel rear facing camera. It's a phone primarily aimed at older users who want bigger buttons and simple features, so the Ice Cream Smart would probably follow suit.

Is the time right for a global flip phone revival? Or is this another limited edition handset destined for South Korea? We'll keep you posted.

David Nield
Freelance Contributor

Dave is a freelance tech journalist who has been writing about gadgets, apps and the web for more than two decades. Based out of Stockport, England, on TechRadar you'll find him covering news, features and reviews, particularly for phones, tablets and wearables. Working to ensure our breaking news coverage is the best in the business over weekends, David also has bylines at Gizmodo, T3, PopSci and a few other places besides, as well as being many years editing the likes of PC Explorer and The Hardware Handbook.