Samsung Stretchable OLED: Galaxy S8 Maker Showcasing New Display Technology In US This Week

Samsung is unveiling its newest invention in the U.S. this coming Tuesday. The tech giant itself announced this Monday that it is going to debut its stretchable OLED display at the Los Angeles Convention Center during the Society for Information Display 2017. Sources say the Galaxy S8 maker is going to use this technology in making wearable display and many other things.

According to Korea Herald, Samsung Display has confirmed that it will be showcasing a 9.1-inch stretchable light-emitting diode panel at the display conference, which is scheduled to kick off tomorrow. This is going to be the most advanced display technology that the South Korean company is introducing into the tech industry. It has previously worked on bendable, foldable and rollable displays.

A spokesperson explained that this stretchable display panel can be transformed or physically altered not just on one side like its previous inventions. “While current flexible OLED is able to be transformed in only one side, this stretchable OLED can be transformed — whether curved, bended or rolled — in both sides, above and below,” the spokesperson said.

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Shedding more light on the new OLED technology, Samsung Display stated that the panel could be dented up to 12 millimeters when pressed. Interestingly, it returns to its original shape when it is let go, just like a balloon. It seems this is what consumers can expect from the prototype the firm is debuting this Tuesday. Unfortunately, the company admitted that it is still in the early stage of developing the stretchable display.

There is no timetable yet as to when the stretchable panels would be commercially available. However, sources are speculating that Samsung could be applying this to various devices including wearables, Internet of Things, artificial intelligence and even automobile display. Should Samsung really use this technology in making its wearables, consumers could see a very different next-generation Samsung Gear smartwatch in the future.

Meanwhile, we previously learned that Samsung could be launching its first foldable phone this year. Dubbed as Galaxy X, the handset is rumored to sport foldable display, making it possible for users to transform it from being a phone to a tablet and vice versa. Industry insiders even claim that the device could come with a 5-inch display that folds out to become a 7-inch tablet screen. Samsung has yet to confirm the veracity of these rumors as of late.

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London-based research firm IHS Markit has already shared its prediction for Samsung’s flexible display business. According to the firm, this new invention just signals the continuous evolution of the flexible display market, such that the sales of flexible displays globally are expected to rise to $15.7 billion in 2020. This year, the sales are projected to reach $5.2 billion.

Apart from the stretchable OLED panel, Samsung Display is also showcasing its glassless 3D OLED during the conference. The firm has prepared a 5.09-inch prototype for this display technology. Sources say the practical applications of this technology is in 3D pop-up books, 3D games and virtual reality.

In addition to the two, Samsung is also preparing to introduce its ultra-HD liquid crystal display, which is great for augmented reality, virtual reality and holograms. The company is showing off a 1.96-inch prototype that has a UHD resolution of 3840 x 2160 and a pixel density of 2259 ppi. Comparing this to the QHD displays of 5-inch phones, this has around 780,000 pixels all in all. On the other hand, the ones on smartphones have 50,000 pixels.