Samsung Announces 'Unbreakable' OLED Display For Future Smartphones

Samsung has developed a new OLED panel that the company claims to be “unbreakable.” The new Samsung Display OLED panel has already been certified by Underwiters Laboratories (UL), the official testing company for Occupational Safety and Health Administration of the U.S. Department of Labor.

The tests performed by UL includes dropping the new Samsung OLED panel from 1.2 meters (nearly 4 feet) above the ground. The OLED display was able to survive 26 drops in a row and allegedly continued to “function normally with no damage to its front, sides, or edges.” The display also survived after being dropped from 1.8 meters (6 feet) above the ground.

In addition to the drop tests, UL also tested if the OLED display could survive extreme temperatures. Samsung’s new OLED panel was able to survive the high temperature of 71 degrees and the low temperature of -32 degrees. UL claims that Samsung’s unbreakable OLED panel continued to function normally after the extreme temperature tests.

Samsung Display was able to develop the new flexible OLED panel with unbreakable substrate and an overlay window that’s securely adhered to it. This plastic fortification makes it possible for the OLED panel to be unbreakable. “The fortified plastic window is especially suitable for portable electronic devices not only because of its unbreakable characteristics, but also because of its lightweight, transmissivity and hardness, which are all very similar to glass,” Samsung Display communications team general manager Hojung Kim said.

Flexible displays have been available in the market for quite some time now, but manufacturers typically use glass covers instead of plastic, as pointed out by Engadget. Perhaps Samsung Display’s solution could lead to the development of shatter-resistant phones.

Samsung Display also showed off the unbreakable quality of its new OLED display in a video posted on its YouTube channel. The company showed that the OLED display was able to survive being hit by a rubber mallet multiple times. Unfortunately, the video didn’t show if the display was able to continue functioning normally.

Samsung Display says that the new OLED panel is intended to be used on future smartphones, but the company didn’t give out any specific information on when that may happen. The company also expects its new OLED display to be used on a wide variety of products, including display consoles for cars, mobile military devices, portable gaming consoles and tablets.