Though there's no mention of the RAZR brand in the document, the sketches bear a number of similarities to the RAZR V3: from the use of a rear hinge to clasp the device shut like a flip phone to the butting chin exported straight from the original.

News of the patent -- filed on December 17th with the World Intellectual Property Organisation (WIPO) -- comes just days after Lenovo's plans for a new RAZR were outed by The Wall Street Journal. The phone (believed to be a Verizon exclusive) is tipped to arrive as soon as next month.

Like Samsung's upcoming $1,700 foldable phone, the new RAZR is also expected to come with a hefty price tag of around $1,500. But if they want to woo the masses, both companies will have to produce something less clunky than the bendy handset China's Royole brought to CES earlier this month. And you can bet their rivals will be taking note.