Wacky Wireless News: First Phone With Flexible Screen Available in 2013

Posted on Jun 24th 2013

In the smartphone market products are becoming increasingly uniform – slim, tall, no buttons, huge screen – and manufacturers have to find ways to stand out. LG is trying to be ahead of the curve on the next big thing with bendable screens. The phone manufacturer will reportedly be mass producing flexible OLED screens starting in this year's fourth quarter.

Samsung and LG have teased bendable screens at several recent trade shows. LG will be first out of the gate, as the manufacturer has announced it will be producing roughly 12,000 flexible OLED screens per month starting later this year. It has also promised a smartphone with a flexible screen by the end of 2013. Details about the phone or where it will be sold have not been released. Samsung has reportedly hit a snag in the manufacturing process and won't have a flexible-screen smartphone available until next year.

Chances are, the first phone with a bendable screen will not be flexible itself. The battery and other internals would prevent such awesomeness. If the phone does utilize the screen's bendy feature, it may be in the form of a wrap-around screen, allowing notifications to be seen from any side of the phone. One of the benefits of the OLED screen is that it is shatterproof, as it is made of plastic, not glass.

It’s pretty exciting futuristic technology and with Samsung hot on LG’s heels with their own bendable screens, the competition may create some pretty stellar new phone designs.