Credit: Flickr, twicepix
Your next smartphone may very well be able to bend in half-- if LG’s technology ever comes to market, that is. Following news that both Samsung and LG are preparing smartphones with curved displays, LG has announced that it is developing flexible batteries that could make their devices virtually bendable.
LG has recently started production of what it calls “cable batteries,” which are flexible, wearable batteries that utilize low electricity and are waterproof, according to an LG press release issued through the Korean Newswire. THeir durability, energy efficiency and flexible form factor make them an attractive option for upcoming wearable devices, and LG claims that they can even be tied into a knot.
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This isn't likely to be the battery that ends up in LG’s alleged G Flex curved display phone, however. The Korea-based company has another component called the curved battery that is optimized for devices with curved displays, and LG says that will power its next generation of mobile devices.
LG has already been implementing non-traditional battery design into its current products, such as the “stepped battery” form factor that is present in devices such as the G2. This type of battery refers to a design that stacks two batteries on top of one another, creating what looks like a step. This method is said to take full advantage of a mobile device’s internal space, allowing for more battery without compromising its design.
That could explain why the G2 lasted longer than most phones during the LAPTOP Battery Test, which consists of continuously surfing the Web over LTE with the display brightness set to 40 percent. The T-Mobile G2 lasted for an astounding 13 hours during that test, which is longer than any phone we’ve ever tested.
The introduction of flexible batteries marks a rather significant breakthrough in the future of both smartphones and wearable devices. Although companies such as Samsung have been flaunting bendable displays since CES 2102, the prospect of flexible gadgets had seemed far-fetched because of necessary internals, such as batteries, that couldn't be bent until now.
Both Samsung and LG are rumored to unveil the world’s first commercially available smartphones with curved displays sometime this month, which would mean that these gadgets would have virtually unbreakable displays. The touch screens on these devices would be made of plastic and would use flexible properties to keep them from breaking, but the displays themselves won’t be bendable.
