A
foldable display refers to a type of screen that can be bent or folded without getting damaged. It allows electronic devices to have flexible screens that can be folded like a book, making them more portable and versatile.
Full definition
While bezel-less phones were the leading trend of 2017, smartphone companies could step up their game and come up
with foldable displays for their phones in 2018.
The company has been trying to make
foldable displays for the past few years, but maybe a new advancement has made the flexible devices possible.
If true that would mean the end of the S series and the start of another line that's banking
on foldable displays to attract consumers.
It was initially predicted that the company's
first foldable display phone would arrive in 2015, but that didn't happen.
We've heard so much
about foldable displays and foldable phones over the last few years that, at this point, I really just want one to be publicly released.
Just before the new iPhones launch, Samsung confirmed the launch
of foldable display smartphones in 2018.
On Wednesday, DigiTimes found through its research arm that Samsung Display isn't the only display manufacturer that's going to introduce a new type of
foldable display in the market this 2018.
The company has been interested in the technology for some time and showed its first
foldable display at CES 2014.
In December Patently Apple posted a report titled «A Leading Supplier of
Foldable Display Technology Confirms Five Tech Companies are Testing Foldable Smartphones.»
Interestingly LG has shown off several
foldable display prototypes over the last two years, including the one that can be rolled like a newspaper and another that can be folded like a book.
Probably not, since «Pistachio Ice Cream» (yum, by the way) should add support for phones with multiple screens and
foldable displays as well, and the Pixel 3 can't be all those things.
A patent filed with the US Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) reveals a device with flexible /
foldable display which can be folded in half.
According to Korean site ETNews, it's confirmed that LG Display will mass -
produce foldable displays for Apple, but also for other major industry players including Google and Microsoft.
Samsung's upcoming phone is supposed to have a
single foldable display with no hinge, and Huawei hopes to achieve the same thing as well.
And while the Galaxy maker isn't the only company that has been working with
foldable display tech, Samsung has already secured patents for such a smartphone.
«Samsung Wins Major Design Patents for Future Smartphones with Massive
Wide Foldable Displays Main Google Wins Two Design Patents for their Ambitious Project Ara Modular Smartphone»
LG is going bold this time at the Consumer Electronics Show 2016, where the company is all set to showcase the
largest foldable display ever possible...
Leaked patents have indicated that this foldable phone could feature a heart rate monitor and could come with a 7.3 -
inch foldable display panel.
Last week Patently Mobile posted a report titled «Samsung Invents a New Kind of
Flexible Foldable Display that they refer to as the «Variable Curvature Display.»
Ever
since foldable displays were showcased at CES 2013, market interest over foldable phones have been continuously rising.
Dubbed as Galaxy X, the handset is rumored to
sport foldable display, making it possible for users to transform it from being a phone to a tablet and vice versa.
Bloomberg also says that this technology is «2 - 3 years away» which is a bit surprising - by then Apple is expected to
adopt foldable displays.
Friday's report claims the new plant is being built because of anticipated demand from smartphone companies, and mass - production of
foldable displays measuring 9 to 10 inches.
Provided this patent is related to the Project Valley device, it seems like it would simply feature a single
foldable display instead of one that is divided into two sections.
While foldable display tech has been shown off by a multitude of manufacturers before, Samsung is perhaps the closest to bring it to fruition.
The slightly larger 13.3 - inch X380 Yoga has the signature
Yoga foldable display and introduces Lenovo's Active Pen and an IR camera for Windows Hello facial recognition.
Samsung Display, the section of the South Korean tech giant that manufacturers displays, has sped up research relating to
foldable displays so the device in an effort to release the device later this year.
Research and development has been happening for a long time, but
foldable displays still aren't at the stage where they can survive three years of the bends.
Per Engadget, it seems that Samsung CEO Kwon Oh Hyun has vowed that the company will release mobile devices with
foldable displays by 2015, a major step forward for a company that recently released its first - ever smartphone with a curved display.
Microsoft, on the other hand, may
use foldable displays for that mythical Surface phone we keep hearing about.
We've also seen reports suggesting that Apple is interested in
incorporating foldable displays into its iPhone lineup, though the Herald reports that such a design won't be included in Apple's 2017 iPhone lineup.
Foldable iPhone / iPad will rely on futuristic technologies developed by LG and other companies — the Korean giant already has an experience in producing
interesting foldable display prototypes.
Even though the design is similar to the ZTE Axon M, which sports a a dual display with hinges and clamshell design, Samsung Galaxy X will be supposedly sporting a
fully foldable display, which will be the first of its kind in the world.
Others, including Lenovo, are believed to be planning phones with
foldable displays too, but up to this point, projects haven't advanced past the concept stage.
Foldable displays seem to be different from flexible displays, which Samsung already uses in its Galaxy S8 and Note 8 flagships.
Samsung foldable phone conceptFor years, there's been talk that Samsung was working on a smartphone featuring an
entirely foldable display.
Samsung has been working
on foldable displays since 2011, but the fabled galaxy X is yet to be unveiled.