Foldables have come a long way from their early days of feeling like clunky, unpolished, and experimental products to ones that can be confidently carried around — and dare we say, even used as roughly as regular phones. But while strides have been made in other aspects, the glass covering the internal display remains a tough nut to crack, particularly when it comes to the dreaded crease. Choosing between durability and aesthetics must be quite the dilemma for engineers, but last year's Oppo Find N handled it like a champ, doing away with the crease (almost) completely and without compromise. Samsung's Galaxy Z Fold4 would look like it'd be headed down the same road but, as a new report suggests, that may not be the case.

Ice Universe, a tipster who has a pretty decent track record in terms of this sort of intelligence, has revealed on Twitter that the Galaxy Z Fold4 will be keeping the crease once more, albeit with some improvement. Apparently, the screen will look a little 'smoother' this year, meaning it's fair to assume that the bothersome line down the middle will be less visible than the one on the Galaxy Z Fold3.

This may come as a disappointment for some considering there are foldable offerings now in the market — albeit one that isn't the easiest to export phones from — with nearly-seamless display glass, but hey, it's still better than no progress at all.

What may be particularly irksome about this development, though, is that the crease-less display in Oppo's Find N device was manufactured by none other than Samsung. One would think that the company would reserve the best parts it made itself for its own products. We're guessing that the issue of crease visibility, however, has more to do with how the hinge is engineered.

The "teardrop hinge" mechanism on the Moto Razr (2019)

The latest foldables from Oppo and Motorola use a fancy "teardrop" hinge that allows for a looser folding radius and, as a result, a less obvious crease — something that the Fold4 will supposedly skip out on. We'll find out soon enough. And if this comes to pass, maybe better luck next year, then.