Foldable phones are all the rage now. The U.S Patent and Trademark Office has officially published new patents for Apple Inc. The patents cover the possibility of foldable iDevices. More specifically, the compositions are directed to an electronic device having a display layer and a cover layer that is made to bend along a flexible region. Apple posted a patent application last year titled “Apple invents both Single and Multi-Fold Device Form Factors for Future iDevices.”. The flexible cover layer for the new iPhones may be formed from a ceramic material such as glass, sapphire, or zirconia to provide some protection for the flexible display.
Why Now Apple?
Samsung and Huawei have been leading the way with foldable phones with the Mate X and the Galaxy fold. However, Apple’s competitors have had issues with these devices in one way or another. Huawei’s Mate X will likely not release due to the presidents China ban and Samsungs Galaxy fold has had a rocky start with its release. The fold was originally going to be available for purchase on April 26 but now will release sometime in July. Now that Apple is finally getting into the ring there are a lot of expectations for them to meet. However, Samsung and Huawei have struggled with foldable tech. Apple can come in strong and blow past the competition or fall with the rest of the competition. Smartphones have not changed drastically visually for a long time. It makes sense to have a foldable electronic device can be folded to accommodate a variety of form factors. In addition, the candy bar phone has turned into a commodity. The market sales numbers are pretty clear.
The need for something new, a form factor that draws the eye of the consumer is on the rise and the tech world is rushing to find the gold mine design. So perhaps the question now is not if Apple will release such device but when. Check out the image below and let us know what you think.
