Future iPhones Might Be Flip Phones, Future iPads Might Fit In Your Pocket [Displays]

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folddisplay512

In addition to unveiling a display today that could give the iPad 3 a Retina Display, Samsung has just debuted a new foldable AMOLED display that could be used to make your next iPad fit into your pocket, your next iPhone an iFlipPhone.

We’ve seen foldable mobile displays before as far back as 2008, when Samsung first showcased a foldable OLED mobile phone. The big drawback, though, was the ugly hinge and the huge line that ran through the middle of the display.

Back to the drawing board, and now, Samsung’s got it right. Using a formula of super-elastic silicone rubber, two protective glass panels and as many AMOLED displays, Samsung’s new screen fit together seamlessly with no hideous, display-marring crease.

The tech is super versatile: Samsung’s engineers have been able to fold the display over 100,000 times with only a 6 percent lost in brightness at the crease to show for things. Better, all the parts are cheap and available.

Apple doesn’t currently source iOS displays from Samsung, and they’ve yet to use an AMOLED display in one of their mobile devices. Still, despite their ongoing legal scuffle, Apple is Samsung’s biggest customer, and it’s hard to believe that the South Korean electronics maker wouldn’t sell Apple a foldable AMOLED display for use in future iPhones and iPads if Cupertino wanted one.

It’s an interesting prospect. Much has been said and rumored about Apple’s iPhone nano, but imagine instead an iPhone that could fold up on itself into a smaller size, or an iPad that could fold up to fit into your pocket while also protecting the display while its collapsed onto its.

It’s enough to make an Apple lover swoon.

[via Gizmodo]

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