Samsung, Microsoft and Apple are all known to be actively working on foldable phones, with the Samsung Galaxy X even tipped to make an appearance later this year.
Now, however, newly filed patents have shown that fellow manufacturer LG is working hard on keeping pace in the bendable race in a bid to revolutionise the mobile device sector.
The newly uncovered patents show the South Korean firm is working on its own foldable display that would allow a tablet device to collapse down into a smartphone form.
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The latest patent filings come just a couple of weeks after further intelligent property filings showed LG was tinkering in the flexible device sector with a clamshell style phone.
Images accompanying the newly unearthed patents show LG could double down on its bendable efforts with a device that features two distinct bends.
This means the device would be capable of being folded down to just a third of its standard size when not in tablet mode.
Unlike the Samsung device which will reportedly fold out from a compact form, LG’s device is believed to work in reverse, with large tablet dimensions being its standard form before collapsing in on itself for travel.
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Although details are currently thin on the ground, LG’s past patents have shown a 7-inch tablet that can be squeezed down into a 5-inch smartphone form at will.
It’s currently unclear when LG would release such a device.
It could have its hand forced sooner than anticipated, however, with reports claiming Samsung will launch a run of 100,000 foldable smartphones later this year.
Foldable phones are widely expected to be the next frontier of smartphone design, with the flexible panels allowing us to abate our need for ever larger screens without loosing the pocketable benefits of a smartphone.
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Are foldable phones the future or a gimmick? Have your say in the comments.
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Editorial independence means being able to give an unbiased verdict about a product or company, with the avoidance of conflicts of interest. To ensure this is possible, every member of the editorial staff follows a clear code of conduct.
Professional conduct
We also expect our journalists to follow clear ethical standards in their work. Our staff members must strive for honesty and accuracy in everything they do. We follow the IPSO Editors’ code of practice to underpin these standards.
