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Samsung's latest patent shows a phone with wraparound display

Samsung's latest patent shows a phone with wraparound display

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A rear display for apps potentially

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There’s a new Samsung patent published today that shows a potential dual-sided smartphone with a wraparound screen that stretches onto the rear of the device, as spotted by LetsGoDigital. There’s little written about the potential device in the patent, which was filed to the United States Patent and Trademark Office on September 2, 2016.

Ten concept drawings refer to a “display device” and show a large main screen on the front that wraps around to the rear where more apps could potentially be displayed. The rear screen looks to be nearly half the size of the front screen. The drawings’ solid lines are the claimed features, while broken lines are illustrative and show what the rest of the device may look like.

This latest patent could hint at a potential concept phone in the future. Samsung has previously filed patents for other concepts, including foldable ones, and the company has previously said it hopes to release a bendable device next year. Samsung has been known for trying new concepts and technology — it showed off a flexible, “unbreakable” AMOLED display called Youm back in 2012, and a curved prototype at CES 2013. Earlier this year Samsung also revealed a new OLED screen prototype which can roll, stretch, and bend.

Apple filed its own patent for a wraparound iPhone display last year, and LG also appears to be experimenting with a crazy screen that wraps around the top of your phone. The real test will be which company can produce a working prototype, or even bring this type of display to regular smartphones.