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yeah because that is what I need my display to do. how many scenarios can you see this useful?

As others have said, look at it as in Westworld.

Imagine having an iPhone that can fold open into an iPad for when you want a bigger screen..
 
I highly doubt this will happen. So many issues with trying to fold a screen.

- You can’t do a sharp fold as there’s a minimum bend radius. Which means devices are going to be much thicker.
- There’s no way you can hide the crease where it gets folded. Having a noticeable “line” in your display is going to be very distracting.
- People like devices and screens that feel solid. The biggest upgrade to the iPad was when they laminated the screen which improved the feel when typing. I doubt you can make a device that folds and maintains rigidity. It’s going to feel sloppy when touching the screen.

I don’t see this going anywhere. Not with today’s technology.

Sure. But what if you could make a band style bracelet with a little bit of give so you could put it on and then adjust the tightness of it? Laminated to a very thin spray on style battery?

That might be useful, no?
 
Sometimes I think that all those who cannot visualize a use for something like this, should be put on a master "do not sell to" list.

With such an abysmal lack of imagination, they should be banned from ever being able to enjoy one.

Grump!

Oh yeah, and get off my lawn, you ignorant whippersnappers !!
 
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I think we are starting to reach over for more from back to the future then gonna move on to blade runner and miniorty report tech! Just my two sense.
 
The thing to keep in mind with folding / bendable displays is that it likely means the end of glass being used on the display. For those that don't remember, there was a time when almost every device, even those with touch sensitive screens, had plastic for the screen cover.

I remember having one of the first Compaq iPaq devices and although it was a precursor to both the smartphone and tablet of today in what it could do, it had a plastic screen that ended up getting scratched from using the touch pen for input. I got about 18 months of work use out of it before it was just too scratched to be used.

Maybe the solution with a folding screen is to have glass on the two sides of the panel, leaving the fold / spine with just plastic to allow for the fold to happen. It will be interesting to see if they can create a plastic that doesn't weaken or create a milky white line at the fold point over time, which is normally what happens with plastic.

My Motorola Q had a plastic screen. Just from being in my pocket over time it got so scratched up it was unusable.
 



Apple is developing an iPhone with a foldable display alongside LG Display, reports Korean site The Investor. Apple is said to have chosen to work with LG and not Samsung out of fears that Samsung could get ahold of sensitive tech.

This is not the first time we've heard rumors of a future iPhone with a foldable display. Back in December of 2016, rumors suggested LG's display division would begin mass-producing foldable displays for smartphones as early as 2018, with Apple said to be one possible partner.

lgfoldabledisplay-800x533.jpg

LG has shown off several foldable display prototypes over the last two years, including one that folds over like a book and a second that rolls up much like a newspaper. LG's foldable displays use flexible OLED panels and LG has been working to increase durability and yield rate.

LG is said to have recently created a dedicated task force to start developing a foldable OLED display for a future iPhone, while its siser company LG Innotek has a team developing a rigid flexible printed circuit board or (RFPCB) to go along with it.

Folding display technology is a ways off from launch, and unnamed industry sources believe panel production for an iPhone with a folding display won't kick off until 2020, which is more than two years from now.

Samsung supplies the OLED displays for the iPhone X and is also expected to supply OLED panels for Apple's 2018 iPhones, but LG recently started OLED production for phones at a factory in China and has plans to begin supplying Apple with panels as early as 2019.

Next year's devices will not include foldable display tech, but we have heard rumors suggesting an all-OLED lineup with two OLED devices in 5.85 and 6.46-inch sizes.

Article Link: Apple Working With LG Display on Future Foldable iPhone
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Apple is developing an iPhone with a foldable display alongside LG Display, reports Korean site The Investor. Apple is said to have chosen to work with LG and not Samsung out of fears that Samsung could get ahold of sensitive tech.

This is not the first time we've heard rumors of a future iPhone with a foldable display. Back in December of 2016, rumors suggested LG's display division would begin mass-producing foldable displays for smartphones as early as 2018, with Apple said to be one possible partner.

lgfoldabledisplay-800x533.jpg

LG has shown off several foldable display prototypes over the last two years, including one that folds over like a book and a second that rolls up much like a newspaper. LG's foldable displays use flexible OLED panels and LG has been working to increase durability and yield rate.

LG is said to have recently created a dedicated task force to start developing a foldable OLED display for a future iPhone, while its siser company LG Innotek has a team developing a rigid flexible printed circuit board or (RFPCB) to go along with it.

Folding display technology is a ways off from launch, and unnamed industry sources believe panel production for an iPhone with a folding display won't kick off until 2020, which is more than two years from now.

Samsung supplies the OLED displays for the iPhone X and is also expected to supply OLED panels for Apple's 2018 iPhones, but LG recently started OLED production for phones at a factory in China and has plans to begin supplying Apple with panels as early as 2019.

Next year's devices will not include foldable display tech, but we have heard rumors suggesting an all-OLED lineup with two OLED devices in 5.85 and 6.46-inch sizes.

Article Link: Apple Working With LG Display on Future Foldable iPhone
So now everyone is loving the foldable design. I had that in the ds/game boy back in 2004 and my flip phone Motorola back in 07.
 
Like plenty of others have said in this thread, if you have any doubts about a foldable display and its usefulness, just watch an episode of Westworld and get back to us...

I want that device from Westworld. A phone that can fold out into an iPad when needed.
 
That's Samsung's design.
They've been using it in their Galaxy lines since the Edge.
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Hyperbole much?
Samsung has been working on and showing off foldable and bendable display tech for a couple of years now.

They showed off working prototypes at CES in 2013.



And here is a video of flexible LED displays from 2006. I've seen it on TV even earlier to that. We are not talking about lab prototypes here. Apple needs to do something at scale, resolving multiple issues.

 
yeah because that is what I need my display to do. how many scenarios can you see this useful?

This is initially meant for the AW, not the iPhone. If you look at Apples iOS hardware design language, the hardware dev team introduces it on a small scale product (iPod, AW, etc) to work out any major design flaws and conduct a durability test in the wild, while the production scale can handle the small scale technology to scale up.

If you compare the iPhone X hardware design, it resembles the AW (minus notch). AW and iPhone X both have OLED screens, Stainless Steel frames, bezel-less (minus notch) face, protruding sensors and in the iPhone case a protruding camera, etc.

This flexible OLED screen makes perfect sense for an AW, one of the biggest concerns is the size of the screen on the present offering. Its just not large enough to do anything productive on a wrist based device. Apple needs to evolve WatchOS and with the present screen size it can only do so much to relay and interact information. Apple is forced to eventually adopt a flexible for AW, or it will stagnate. Where else are they going to develop it hardware wise further, longer battery life, not going to persuade enough or adopters to warrant a purchase.

Once the AW screen goes flexible OLED, it will bring greater possibilities. Connect the dots, they are patented a wristband that auto adjusts to accommodate a perfect fit. If the battery, sensors, etc are split between the display and band, you can accomplish and offer more possibilities. At present the wristband does not do anything special other than be a fashion accessory.

I believe this will make it to the AW possibly around 2019/20, iPhone in 2022/24, and iPad Pro 2023/2025. AW is destined to hit a wall eventually without flexible displays, unfortunately.
[doublepost=1507779888][/doublepost]
This is sooooo great ! Go Apple !

Developing a flexible battery is the bigger challenge unfortunately. The only way at present that I am aware of is to isolate each cell structure and connected via matrix. Think of the battery being the utility pouches in a belt. The display sits on top of that matrix and the other size can use another flexible material for design aesthetics. If this were to happen, the logic board will also be encapsulated in a unity pouch, and all connected via a data ribbon.

Reminds me of the Nintendo Game&Watch days.
 
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Other than novelty, what purpose could such a display serve? Alls I can see is possibly doubling the iPhone screen size and halfing it for ease of carry. Still, if it’s flimsy it would be a nuisance. Will be interesting to see what comes of it. Maybe it will be like the space program and yield more out of incident rather than by direct success.
 
20+ years away from this being viable for consumer applications.
At the rate technology is going? No chance!

Samsung have already solved the hard part - bendable displays.
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Other than novelty, what purpose could such a display serve? Alls I can see is possibly doubling the iPhone screen size and halfing it for ease of carry. Still, if it’s flimsy it would be a nuisance. Will be interesting to see what comes of it. Maybe it will be like the space program and yield more out of incident rather than by direct success.
You just described the main purpose lol and it's a fantastic purpose as well.

A 5.8 inch phone that can turn into a tablet ? Amazing!
[doublepost=1507789961][/doublepost]I don't get people of thinking flexible batteries etc. the battery would be located in one half etc the only think that needs to flex is the connections and the screen. The bending of the screen had been possible for the last 3/4 years with Samsung. It's the durability/connections/amount of flex that is the problem I heard.
[doublepost=1507790079][/doublepost]Who ever does this first thought wins the game though really. My guess is Samsung does it first because they seem to be far ahead of everyone else
 
Foldable displays would be useful for tiny screen devices like Apple Watch NOT iPhones
[doublepost=1507792618][/doublepost]Imagine how chunky and ugly that iPhone would be if it got folded.
 
Sometimes I think that all those who cannot visualize a use for something like this, should be put on a master "do not sell to" list.

With such an abysmal lack of imagination, they should be banned from ever being able to enjoy one.

Logical fallacy. It's not just about imagination. It's Because they don't have experience with a product to formulate an opinion. It's natural for somebody to perhaps doubt something they don't understand or fully visualize how this would accompany to their lifestyle and how it would benefit them directly. I wouldn't necessarily say it's lack of imagination, as much as it is ignorance or in general understanding of what Unreleased technology could potentially offer.

I tend to pose the question when somebody says they think the idea is "ridiculous" or "something they would never use", "I ask how would you know this based on what?" I don't ask this to generate snark, I ask this legitimately asking how would you know that without having experiencing it or fully understanding Something to its full potential. It's instilling or provoking thought for the doubtful individual to think critically.
 
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Foldable screen tech isn't so much about the flexibility but the depth of the stack and how you can apply them permanently to a curved surface. Flexible is a misnomer and doesn't mean a display that flexes but instead one that can be shaped into any number of designs.

I'm sure apple is working towards a display that covers the entire front of the device from metal back to front. The only way to cover those pesky curves is with this tech. The current iPhone 8 top bar will instead float at the top of the screen in this possible future version.
 
The first company to crack nano batteries is going to make an insane amount and it will make things like this awesome.
 
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