Future iPhones Could Include A Wraparound Display
March 28, 2013
The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office has published an interesting new Apple patent application for a wraparound AMOLED display. This invention would allow content to be displayed on either side of an iOS device.
In the application, Apple says that existing form factors for mobile devices aren’t making proper use of all surfaces. In particular, the sides and rear surfaces are “unused or at best configured with buttons and switches with fixed location and functionality.”
As an alternative, Cupertino envisions an “apparatus, method, and computer readable medium for creating a portable electronic device with a wraparound display.”
Apple says that this design does away with physical buttons on the iOS device. Additionally, it could be made of either aluminum or optically transparent glass.
In terms of uses, Apple envisions that this technology could give an “illusion of depth perception (that) can be presented mimicking a 3-D experience.” In addition, since the display wraps around the entire device, so too could videos and still images.
While the most likely use of this technology would be on a future iPhone, it could also work on the so-called iWatch. The patent application is credited to Scott A. Myers. It was submitted in September 2011.
Very nice, don't you think?