Samsung is holding a Galaxy phone event in and around mid-August. Samsung's rumor mill is ramping up suggesting that there could be three foldable phones on the way.

Earlier this month the Korea Herald stated that Samsung's upcoming show will be the first that will pivot around their foldable smartphone lineup, bidding adieu to the phablet-type Galaxy Note series with the S Pen stylus that had been the highlight of the August show for the last decade.

At the August Unpacked event, Samsung is expected to introduce one Galaxy Z Fold3 model and two Galaxy Z Flip3 models.

According to leaked render images, the Galaxy Z Fold 3 is likely to feature a 7.55-inch internal foldable Super AMOLED screen and a 6.23-inch cover display.

For photography, it is likely to sport a total of five cameras, including a triple camera module of three 12MP shooters, a 16MP under-display selfie-camera and a 10MP shooter on the cover display.

If so, it will be the first time Samsung introduces the under-display camera for smartphones. Known as UDC, the camera embedded under the display would offer an uninterrupted viewing experience, free of notches or punch holes on the main display.

The third edition of Z Fold will also support S Pen, which could be attractive to long-time users of Galaxy Note devices. For more read The Korea Herald report

Patently Apple posted a report in early April (2021) titled "A Samsung Patent Filing reveals that S Pen input could be coming to Galaxy Z Fold Smartphones and possibly this summer." The patent figures below are from that patent filing.

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On Monday, July 12th, Wccftech reported that "The new S-Pen Pro is finally being readied, and it seems that Samsung wants to unveil it alongside the Galaxy Z Fold 3." The report pointed to an FCC filing to prove the new S-Pen Pro is official.

For even more predictions for Samsung's August Unpacked event, see Engadget's report revealing extensive leaks.

Earlier this month a Samsung patent revealed what could be coming to the Galaxy Z Fold in the future. Samsung's patent FIG. 7 below illustrates a schematic of a new foldable device concept that uses special programmable function buttons and gestures;  FIG. 9B illustrates a possible future Samsung foldable phone in the folded state illustrating the placement of new buttons.

Samsung's patent FIG. 12 below is an exploded view of the new button concept for a future Galaxy Fold device;  FIG. 13 illustrates an operational flow of the gesture function.

Samsung's patent goes on to illustrate the button concept possibly extending to their flip style folding phone and possibly being positioned differently.

The sensor module of the foldable phone may include, for example, a gesture sensor, a gyro sensor, a barometric pressure sensor, a magnetic sensor, an acceleration sensor, a grip sensor, a proximity sensor, a color sensor, an infrared sensor, a biometric sensor, a temperature sensor, a humidity sensor, or an illuminance sensor.

About the buttons: while the buttons may be physical, there's the distinct impression that the buttons are implied by way of a user gesture controls. Samsung explains: "In one embodiment, the gesture input signal may be related to finger movements (for example, finger movement patterns). For example, a swipe gesture input signal may be generated through a swipe gesture."

In another example, Samsung notes that the swipe gesture may be finger movements in the unfolded state of the electronic device involving touching a specific section of the first side surface 200c, moving in the positive y-axis direction or negative y-axis direction, and releasing. The swipe gesture enables key input signals to be sequentially generated through the first edge keys arranged on the first side surface 200c, and these key input signals may be recognized as a swipe gesture input signal.

In various embodiments, Samsung further notes that the gesture input signal may be related to a state in which the electronic device is held by a hand. For example, a squeeze gesture input signal may be generated through a squeeze gesture."

Another Samsung foldable granted patent was published yesterday by the U.S. Patent Office under number 11,061,445 that was originally filed in August 2020. Samsung's patent FIG. 2 below illustrates an example of a hinge state of a foldable phone (like the Galaxy Z Flip) and FIG. 16 provides a view illustrating an example of a first folding angle state of a housing and a hinge structure. For more details on this, review Samsung's flip phone patent here.