Flexible displays: future technologies with the disadvantages of the present

Devices with flexible displays are gradually taking over the world. The main «pioneers» are smartphones such as the Samsung Galaxy Fold, Motorola Razr, or Huawei Mate X. Other solutions are slowly emerging, such as external monitor of the Asus brand. Next, tablets and laptops will enter the race. Today we will try to figure out what new devices this technology will bring and outline the current problems that arise when using them.

New technology gives rise to new concepts

Let’s think back to the predecessors of modern smartphones—PDAs (Pocket PCs). They had large screens for better Internet browsing, Office work, and many other things that we now take for granted. When you look at one of these rarities like Nokia E90, you find yourself thinking that this old communicator is an analog of many modern smartphones with flexible displays, such as Samsung Galaxy Fold, Google Pixel Fold. The idea and overall design are the same: use it as a regular phone and open the center part for tasks that require a large screen.

Nokia E90 Communicator, 2007

The further idea of a «large display in a smartphone body» is updated in the 2019 Huawei Mate X. It has one large display that gradually opens at the user’s request. Today, the idea of a flexible display is revealed by the Huawei Mate XT Ultimate, which can combine three different screen diagonal form factors: 6.4″ (a regular smartphone), 7.9″ (a small tablet), or 10.2″ (a full-fledged tablet).

At this year’s CES 2025, Samsung showed new concepts for the devices we are used to. The alarm clock option doesn’t look like anything interesting. But a huge flexible display in a car will allow drivers to better see the direction of movement in the navigator. Lenovo’s laptop is also amazing: in fact, we can carry a regular 14-inch model that can vertically add another 20-25% of the screen.

A smartphone with a display that increases vertically looks exceptional. This solves the problem of the keyboard when typing text, which usually covers half the space. A new concept Flex Hybrid really looks fantastic—you can expand the display horizontally on both sides. If now an 8″ screen may not be enough, the new display adds +2 inches on each side. Thus, future generations of Fold will be able to increase the panel size up to 12″. Future laptops or tablets like Flex Note will have displays that can completely replace the keyboard unit.

LG, like Samsung, sees a further technological revolution in flexible stretchable screens. They will allow not only to enlarge the display, but also to take on different shapes. For example, a smartwatch that consists entirely of a display around a person’s hand. Or embed the display in clothing, as in this video about Fashion Week.

LG presented a very interesting concept of stretchable displays at SID 2025. The screen does not just stretch to other sides, but takes the form of keys according to the user interface (UI). The developer demonstrated its operation on the example of a car’s center console. At first, the display may be invisible to the user. After touching, the volume, climate control, etc. keys appear. Each of them will have its own shape and backlight, so the driver will be able to use them even blindly.

Samsung also showed something similar to IMID 2024. The image of a volcanic island truly «emerged» from digital 2D to our real 3D world. It will take a long time to unlock the potential of Flexible Stretched Display technology. Not all situations require such transformations. With a variable UI, it still looks slow. Watching movies or TV shows is unlikely to make any sense. Except in games on mobile devices, where UI elements will «rise» above the usual flat part.

Previous generations of Apple Macbook Pro had a so-called Touch Bar above the keyboard. The idea is interesting, but after a few years, they decided to remove it. The main reason for the removal was the inability to accurately transmit the sensations from the keys. Each time the owner needs to look at the touch panel and select the desired action. With this new technology, each touch key could be raised up, and users could distinguish the keys by touch.

The main problems of devices with flexible displays

No matter how great technology is, there are always some downsides. Let’s try to figure out how small they are or not.

Price — the main enemy of mass distribution

The most understandable and obvious reason for a potential buyer and his wallet is the price of such devices. It is difficult to produce flexible displays even many years after the first generation. It is evident that during this time they have been able to develop mid-budget solutions for a conventional $500-600. For example, Motorola Razr 50. However, a single smartphone will not give such a jump in sales. Other brand models are still too expensive. The well-known Apple could significantly accelerate the prevalence of flexible displays, but it has not presented a single model over the years.

As early as 2022 introduced the LG Flex OLED TV monitor with a flexible display. Most people might think that this is just a prototype and nothing more. But no, this is a full-fledged 4K 120 Hz display. The automatic system allows the 900R to bend in 5% increments, providing 20 positions. The price of such a monitor is still impressive — from $2500.

Visual «feature»

Another visible «flexible» problem is bending at the point where the display is bent. This problem is pointed out by absolutely all reviewers and buyers. Of course, after a while of using the display, you just stop noticing it. It’s good that the developers are trying to solve this problem. But let’s be honest, it will be very difficult to solve it physically. Sooner or later, anything gets deformed. Samsung even had to write a separate messages on the support pageThe bend in the center of the screen will not interfere with the experience of using the device.

Hinges take up space inside

Let’s take a look at a comparison table of batteries in devices with flexible and flat displays.

Title	Display type	Battery, mAh	Display size, inches
Motorolla Razr 50	Bent	4200	6,9
Motorolla Razr 50 Ultra	Bent	4000	6,9
Motorolla Razr 60 Ultra	Bent	4700	7
Samsung Galaxy Z Flip6	Bent	4000	6,7
Samsung Galaxy Z Flip7	Bent	4300	6,9
Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 7	Bent	4400	8
Apple iPhone 16 Plus	Flat	4674	6,7
Apple iPhone 16 Pro Max	Flat	4685	6,9
Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra	Flat	5000	6,9
Google Pixel 9 Pro XL	Flat	5060	6,8
Oneplus 13	Flat	6000	6,82
Xiaomi Poco F7	Flat	6500	6,83

It’s easy to see that conventional smartphones perform better. The explanation issimple— the flexibility mechanism «eats up» the potential space for a larger battery. Motorola Razr 60 Ultra was an exception to the rule, but it should be compared to new Chinese smartphones.

Samsung Galaxy Z Flip6 from the inside. Two separate batteries inside. Part of the internal structure of the case is occupied by the opening mechanism

Display protection

Flat panel displays are usually protected by glass, such as Corning. Users can also install additional types of glass or films. Thus reducing the likelihood of the screen breaking. And what about the flexible «» brothers? You can forget about classic glass rightaway— it doesn’t bend, crack, or break. Applying an additional film will improve protection, but it tends to come off at the bend, which incurs additional replacement costs. The screen protector will need to be replaced every few months, as the display is quite thin. There are many stories of small broken pixels on the Internet.

Flexible displays are experiencing a real boom in use with new devices. New conceptual designs only reinforce the mainpoint— these are the screens of the future. So the last question is: of the distant or near future?