Future iPhones Could Fold In Half (geek.com) 95
Apple has just received a patent, titled "electronic devices with carbon nanotube printing circuits," that suggests future iPhones may be foldable -- at least to some degree. Geek reports: Based on the language in the patent, it doesn't sound like Apple is specifically talking about a device that has a fully bendable display. It mentions one that can bend "along edges of touch sensors or displays." The carbon nanotube PCBs provide flexibility for some of the phone's internals, but not all of them. Those other parts will likely be covered by other patents if Apple is genuinely working on a seamless foldable device. The usual caveats apply here. For now, this is simply yet another patent padding Apple's already massive portfolio. Could they be planning to release an iPhone that folds in half? Definitely.
Thanks Apple (Score:2)
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"Courage" you jackass. Why the fuck can't you nerds remember a simple word.
He decided to show courage by not saying it, instead of saying it
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And that's why Apple is getting patents on folding phones, because they're so creative and they're going to have patented rounded corners, wow, how creative is THAT, huh, Samsung could never compare to Apple which has phones that fold in half and rounded corners! /sarc - I think
Apple is in for a surprise when they arrive at the patent office. Samsung has already patented folding phones.
http://www.digitaltrends.com/m... [digitaltrends.com]
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And that's why Apple is getting patents on folding phones, because they're so creative and they're going to have patented rounded corners, wow, how creative is THAT, huh, Samsung could never compare to Apple which has phones that fold in half and rounded corners! /sarc - I think
Apple is in for a surprise when they arrive at the patent office. Samsung has already patented folding phones.
http://www.digitaltrends.com/m... [digitaltrends.com]
Yeah, and I applaud them for demoing that by putting a sheet of paper into a plastic case and then folding that.
But back to to the real point: this isn't about patenting "a foldable display" as in "all possible foldable displays", it's about a technology to make a foldable display. And Samsung uses "a metal thin film", Apple uses "a carbon nanotube flexible printed circuit". Notice the difference?
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I don't think this has anything to do with flip phones or even bendable devices. I'd bet that this is all about creating components that can be more easily bent and squeezed into tiny spaces, such as you find in many of today's consumer electronics devices. Think about the advantages of being able to roll your circuit board up and stuffing it into a pen-type device.
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iFlip ?
no inputs or screen (Score:1)
but it won't have any inputs and the screen won't be visible without a $25 dongle you add to your $600 iGlasses that have to be connected to your iWatch (something has to tell this thing the time) because they think that is the next great thing
Cook's newest invention (Score:1)
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You joke but I'm seriously thinking about going back to my old w995.
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This week I recharged, popped in a 3G SIM that had been in an original HTC Desire (bravo) and switched on my old Nokia 8310.
Registered to the network (with a hilariously old operator logo of One 2 One) and worked just fine. Lasted 3 days before the battery gave in, and I can't remember how good the battery used to be on that.
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It will also have rounded corners like nobody's business....
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And they'll make it thin. I mean, THIN thin. Really thin. Like super thin. Unbelieveably thin. Like thin as a razor. So thin you can't even use all the letters to describe it.
The Apple iPhone Razr.
Apple: the Courage to Think diiferent.
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That's why Apple will never produce a foldable phone... those filthy, uncouth users might choose to fold it in half, instantly doubling its thickness.
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That's why Apple will never produce a foldable phone... those filthy, uncouth users might choose to fold it in half, instantly doubling its thickness.
They already make a foldable phone. Of course, you can only fold it once...
Apple iShave (Score:2)
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"The 3 dongle shave club"... Sounds dongly
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Wait till they discover slider phones. Its amazingly fantastic slide out keyboard.
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Slide out keyboards require extra thickness so they won't go for that. Besides the virtual keyboard already slides up from the bottom of the screen.
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Wait till they invent and patent slider phones. Its amazingly fantastic slide out keyboard.
FTFY
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Patent Logic 101:
X via human hand: not patentable
X via robot hand: patentable
X via Internet: patentable
X via phone screen: patentable
X in the cloud: patentable
They invented the flip-phone? (Score:1)
What will they think of next?
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Maybe they will add an external antennae!
Its the obvious solution to all those idiots who are holding it wrong.
Pushing courage to its limit (Score:2)
Wow, such brave! (Score:5, Funny)
Now you can roll your phone up and shove it up your ass!
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I think Apple's response to that would be, "You're folding it wrong."
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Or "You're shoving it up your ass wrong."
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Simplify: skip the first step.
Actually, every phone is fold-able. Whether it's still useful afterwards is another matter.
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Actually, every phone is fold-able. Whether it's still useful afterwards is another matter.
Indeed. [imore.com]
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Ass (Score:2)
Poor donkey!
That's really cool! (Score:1)
I really like that idea! But, I liked it even better when it was called the Microsoft Courier. [wikipedia.org]
Geez, copying Samsung now? (Score:2)
Samsung to introduce foldable phones in 2017 [youtube.com]
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So what? (Score:5, Funny)
Current iPhones can already fold in half, if you push hard enough. Wake me up when we can unfold them back into a functional state.
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Current iPhones can already fold in half, if you push hard enough. Wake me up when we can unfold them back into a functional state.
You're folding it wrong!
I see what you did there - bravo!
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Current iPhones can already fold in half, if you push hard enough. Wake me up when we can unfold them back into a functional state.
You're folding it wrong!
I see what you did there - bravo!
Don't you mean courage?
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That's the actual use-case for this tech. The iPhone 6/6S suffers from touch disease, a condition where flexing causes the touch screen controller IC to fail. By making the PCB more flexible, it is less likely to fail due to being kept in someone's pocket.
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This. All the wild speculation misses the really low-hanging fruit use case.
That would be pretty goddamn cool (Score:3)
This wouldn't be enough to make me buy an iOS device, but I have to admit it would make me a little jealous. I miss the compactness of my old flip phone. It seems phones have been getting smaller in stupid ways (e.g. by having ever-more-anemic batteries, as if I give a fuck about its thickness) instead of getting smaller in actually-convenient ways. Most phones, you can easily get 4-8 times as thick and have it be just as good (and probably gain something useful, like battery space) so folding for 2x thickness while reducing its biggest dimension, is a good move.
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^ This.
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Folding an iPhone is also easier in the full-sized Ford Transit, with the odd door pocket that becomes inaccessible when the door is closed: https://thechive.files.wordpress.com/2015/12/some-people-arent-the-brightest-crown-in-the-box-15-gifs-7.gif?w=400 [wordpress.com]
Probably need a new connector (Score:1)
And it won't work with any Mac without adapter.
Rollable phone (Score:3)
There was a series from New Zealand called This is Not My Life and they had an interesting idea of a phone (though it probably showed up elsewhere too). Take a canister that you could wrap your hand around and make it slightly longer. From there the screen is pulled out. It's about the size of a man's hand. When you done with it then you just push it back into the canister part. It's been a while since I've watch the series so I forget all of the detail of what it could do. Basically an advanced smart phone that also lets you control your home environment.
It's also a pretty good show. They were supposed to make a second season but some company from the US bought the rights to the show and an American version was supposed to be made.
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Samsung had a concept short on the sort of thing you mentioned (2013). The add is rather the stupid but the tech showcased is rather interesting.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?... [youtube.com]
Yawn (Score:2)
Don't hold your breath. They had a patent in 2002 for changing the colors of a device's case that we still haven't seen used. [slashdot.org]
Huh? (Score:2)
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Not only can they patent the obvious, they can patent utter fantasy and don't even have to build it. Every patent must be accompanied with a working prototype and only then it should be deemed patentable.
Resistant to bending.. (Score:3)
wow! (Score:2)
Can I just flip it back open? WOW!
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Please stop. Please. (Score:2)
Just give me a gimmick free phone. I want blazing fast hardware, as much battery life as possible, a good looking screen, and I don't want it to break if I look at it the wrong way.
Unfold to Unlock (Score:2)
Will they fold accidently or as a design feature? (Score:2)
weeeee (Score:2)
I've always wanted an iFlip
Headphone Jack (Score:2)
I'd rather have a headphone jack than a phone that folds in half.
We have that already (Score:1)