Displays of future: Can they be stretched and twisted?

November 13, 2022  12:54

In the not-so-distant future, the familiar displays of smartphones, tablets and other devices, most likely, will be replaced by flexible ones: they can be stretched and twisted - almost like rubber.

The new display from LG

LG Display has recently unveiled a similar technology - the world's first high-definition stretchable display. It can be stretched by 20%: the display diagonal is 12 inches, but it can be stretched up to 14 inches.

Moreover, it can be bent and twisted - and it will not be damaged. According to the developer, the display can withstand more than 10,000 repeated shape changes.

lg-new-display

The new one has a density of 100 pixels per inch. It is based on a highly elastic film substrate of special silicon, which is used in contact lenses. The display uses a MicroLED light source with a pixel pitch of less than 40 microns.

According to LG Display, this display can easily be attached to a variety of curved surfaces - it could be leather, clothing, furniture and cars.

Unfortunately, this display is unlikely to be installed on devices in the near future. The company is going to continue development until at least 2024, but it is possible that it will take much longer before it hits the market.

Lenovo's "stretchable" screen

Chinese company Lenovo recently showed a laptop with a "stretchable" screen, which can turn from a rectangle into a square. In this case, the content will dynamically adapt to the screen, which can be very convenient for a variety of tasks.

Lenovo rolling laptop.JPG (68 KB)

This is still a conceptual model, and it is unknown whether Lenovo will begin mass production of such a device.

A smartphone with a retractable display from Motorola

Motorola, which makes cell phones and other devices, also recently showed off a new smartphone with a retractable display. The phone is quite compact, but at the touch of a button, its display expands from 5 to 6.5 inches. Another push returns the phone to its original size.

This smartphone can be used in both sizes, and the screen content adapts to the changing size.

Motorola rollable smarphone.JPG (31 KB)

It is possible that in the next few years there will be many more such smartphones on the market, and in a dozen years almost all devices will be flexible and change their size and shape. At least, many companies are already working on such technologies.

Pros and cons of flexible displays

Flexible displays can be quite compact - and transform, increase as necessary, which, of course, is a big plus. In addition, such displays are likely to be more difficult to break than the screens that are installed on modern smartphones, tablets and other devices.

On the other hand, such screens may not adequately protect the insides of the device from external influences. In addition, they are likely to have limitations on the number of kinks, especially at the initial time. And their price is likely to be much higher for some time than today's devices with "regular" screens.


 
 
 
 
  • Archive