Flip Phones Are Back - Samsung Brings Out New ‘Smart’ Clamshell

Flip phones ruled the world before iPhone made its appearance - and they could be making a comeback.

Samsung has announced a new ‘smart’ flip phone, which runs Android - and the machines are making a major comeback in the Far East.

Analysts believe that they could be due for a comeback in Europe, as people tire of iPhone-style models.

Adele appeared holding one in her recent hit video for Hello - and stars such as Rihanna and Vogue’s Anna Wintour have been pictured with the gadgets in recent months.

Tech analysts Gartner predict there could be a comeback in Western Europe soon.

The new Samsung SM-W2016 is a pretty standard Android - kind of similar to the Galaxy S6, but with flip appeal, plus 64GB storage, 3GB RAM and Android Lollipop.

The machines have been making a surprise comeback over the past two years, and are now actually denting smartphone sales in hi-tech Japan, one of the first countries to have internet-capable phones.

Smartphone sales have fallen for the second year running in Japan, with sales of flip phones such as Sharp’s Aquos K rising 5.7% year on year.

Takao Shinkai on Japan’s Asahi Shimbun newspaper suggests the big reasons could be price (even the new versions are much cheaper), better battery life and the fact the things are hard to smash.