This year has seen no shortage of rollable display demos from manufacturers, and now Samsung Display is the latest company to show off new concepts for folding and sliding screens. SamMobile spotted the concepts being showcased as part of a virtual Display Week exhibition (if you forgot to mail out your Happy Display Week cards, there’s still time since it runs through Friday) including a “multi-foldable” mobile display and a large 17-inch folding screen.
The company calls its first concept S-foldable, with a bi-fold design that opens up to a maximum screen size of 7.2 inches. It’s similar to the Galaxy Z Fold 2 except, well, plus one fold. There’s also a sliding mobile display similar to the ill-fated rollable concept LG showed off earlier this year before leaving the smartphone space altogether.
Samsung Display is also showing two concepts for bigger panels, including a 17-inch foldable OLED that’s tablet-sized when folded and can function as a monitor when unfolded. Finally, there’s a more traditional-looking laptop display; it doesn’t fold or flex, but it does include an under-display camera — hopefully it’s better than the last one we used.
Samsung Display is a division of Samsung Electronics, and it produces OLED panels for use by Samsung and other consumer tech manufacturers. So while these concepts may end up in future Samsung products, it’s certainly not guaranteed. The company as a whole hasn’t been shy about embracing foldable technology, getting into the foldable device market early. It may have more company soon; display OEM TCL has shown off its own concepts and says it will bring one to market this year. Until then, we’ll be watching and filling out our foldable concept bingo cards.
