Apple is looking into building a rollable iPhone

Still waiting for that foldable iPhone? Perhaps we're getting a rollable iPhone instead.

Apple has been awarded a patent for a smartphone with a rollable display (via Patently Apple). The patent, filed in Nov. 2022 and published on Thursday, describes an electronic device with a display that "may be moved between an unrolled state in which the display is planar and a rolled state in which a rollable portion of the display is rolled up for storage."

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The patent mentions using a "locally thinned" glass layer in the rollable portion, as well as a display configured in such a way that the "compressive stress in the outwardly facing glass surface may help prevent damage to the display when the display is bent."

How about a display that rolls out or in on both sides? Credit: uspto.gov/apple

While the patent talks about electronic devices with displays in general, it also specifically mentions portable devices such as smartphones.

We know rollable displays are very much possible; LG has been on the forefront of this niche with a rollable OLED TV, as well as a rollable phone that came very close to launching but ultimately never saw the light of day. Motorola also showcased a few rollable phone concepts, as did Oppo, but neither company ever launched such a phone to a wide audience.

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Apple, however, is typically far more cautious when introducing such technologies into its widely available products. The fact that the company has a patent for devices with rollable displays at least gives hope that a rollable iPhone or iPad may happen in the future, but we wouldn't bet on it happening very soon.