Apple received a patent for a foldable iPad cover/stand capable of holding the tablet up in a range of viewing angles. It’s a notable improvement over the current Apple Smart Cover.
Of course, there are plenty of third-party folding iPad stands with comparable capabilities. But people are more likely to pick Apple’s version because it’s Apple.
Apple’s potential foldable iPad stand
Apple on Tuesday was awarded a patent by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office for “Multi-angle support cover for electronic devices” (#11,209,870). It covers “accessories for electronic devices that are designed to support and present the electronic devices at multiple angles to a user.”
The design takes the Japanese art of paper folding as its inspiration. “The accessory units can include a panel that has a flexible substrate with a network of structural elements that are arranged to fold the panel into different forms and shapes similar to origami,” says the patent filing.
Images in the documentation show iPad covers that wrap tightly around the tablet but unfold to hold up the screen. There are several possible designs. That includes designs that have room for a keyboard, like a more advanced version of the current Apple Smart Keyboard Folio.
Apple’s patent filing doesn’t restrict itself to iPad. The basic designs could also be used for iPhone, though Apple doesn’t make a foldable iPhone cover/stand. Others do, however.
Not only a possibility… a reality
The fact that Apple patented an iPad cover/stand capable of holding the tablet up at multiple viewing angles isn’t conclusive proof that it’s going to release one. The company regularly gets patents for designs that are never seen again.
But that doesn’t leave iPad users high and dry. As noted, many companies make foldable iPad stands. The Moshi VersaCover is one option. Another is the Moft Snap Tablet Stand.
Ed Hardy has been writing full-time about tech for 25 years, and using it for much longer than that. His intro to Apple was a Macintosh Classic II (which he still has), but now he uses a 13-inch iPad Pro as his primary computer. He’s written for NotebookReview, TabletPCReview, and Brighthand, as well as other sites.
