LG CLOSED ITS VIRTUAL PRESS conference yesterday at CES with a teaser video showing a person holding and expanding a rollable smartphone. The company provided no further details at the time and in a press release that followed said its “rollable device is an ‘exploratory’ look at what the future of smartphones may bring.”
Later however it was confirmed by LG spokesperson Ken Hong that the smartphone is not merely a concept product, but will actually be available later this year. For a company that hasn’t made a profit selling smartphones for years, you have to credit LG for trying to create a buzz at CES.
From the video shown it appears the phone screen can be resized by unfurling it similar to how LG’s rollable OLED TVs operate. LG is apparently working with China’s BOE Technology Group to produce rollable smartphone displays based on flexible organic light-emitting diode technology.
LG’s smartphone business continues to struggle to be profitable due to fierce competition from Samsung, Huawei and Apple. Its mobile communication division reported a US$125 million operating loss in the third quarter, which marks now 22 consecutive quarterly losses, but the losses are narrowing thanks to increased efficiency in production, cost savings from increased ODM (original design manufacturing) and stronger demand for mass-tier models.
TCL Technology Group also showed a brief video of a woman using a concept 6.7” rollable display technology at CES. TCL’s Tiago Abreu, head of the X-Lab at the TCL Industrial Design Center comments in the video that the device can expand from a 6.7” phone to a 7.8” tablet with “a simple tap of the finger.” No release date for this product has been provided.
Whether rollable phones will challenge foldable phones like Samsung’s Galaxy Z Fold 2 remains to be seen. With foldable phones still twice the price of most 5G handsets (and the verdict is still out on their long-term durability), and weighing about twice as much, lighter and hopefully less-expensive rollable devices could become the next form factor of choice. But, like trying to get pricing of new products at CES, their future is yet to be determined.
