Bend me, shape me: Flexible phones 'out by 2013' (Bendable Phones)

BBC ^ | 11/29/2012 | BBC

[Dallas59]

Imagine treating your phone like a piece of paper.

Roll it up. Drop it. Squish it in your backpack. Step on it - without any damage.

Researchers are working on just such handsets - razor-thin, paper-like and bendable.

There have already been prototypes, attracting crowds at gadget shows.

[Revolting cat!]

Nothing new under the sun!

[cripplecreek]

Cool, now the Obama voters can snort they Obamacrack through they Obamaphones.

[Dallas59]

After they dial 911 to report racism.

[RegulatorCountry]

What is the utility of it, let alone the durability? And why does that last rendering show a display on both sides of the phone?

Japanese tend to love new gadgets of questionable value just for the novelty. Most of them never see the light of day in the US.

[Fightin Whitey]

Yass ‘n they can stuffum up they Obama too when the po-po po-pulls they ovah.

[RegulatorCountry]

It’s the second administration Obamaphone 2.0.

More flexible.

[onyx]

Less than $1,200 to GO!

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[knarf]

I can't think of anything more stupid and useless.

Hello, ... honey?
Yeah ... milk, eggs and bread ...
got it ..
yeah .. I love you too.

and I close my flip phone.

[Jonty30]

Yes, those old rotary phones also bent, if you applied enough pressure.

[Jonty30]

If they can fold like paper, you could have larger screens than can be folded to fit in your pocket. You might be able to have screens, when unfolded that might be 8”.

[Inyo-Mono]

LOL! Sounds like me and my flip phone.

[RegulatorCountry]

Repeated folding doesn’t eventually stress the plastic to the point of hazing and cracking?

[cripplecreek]

I appreciate the great technological advances that are driven by the consumerism. On the other hand I can’t help but feel that the constant need for something new is driving the complete lack of fiscal restraint among the public which filters up to government.

There’s a balance to be struck but its one we can only act on at a personal level.

[knarf]

I take an occassional picture I can't see, don't text and my bill is 25 a mo on my son in law's group plan.

sweeet.

[American in Israel]

Now when you feel for the phone you can check every pocket and still not find it. Imagine the advantage of no tactil feed back on a phone that is hard to hold and can blow down the street like a dropped piece of home work!

Yes folks, its the new tits on a boar phone. Coming to a high school near you.

[Jonty30]

They must have overcome that limitation somehow, if they are getting it ready for the consumer market. Perhaps the screen is split when folded, but seamless when joined together.

[ClearCase_guy]

The real money is in re-selling to the satisfied customer whose phone is all cracked and hazed.

[Dallas59]

Too bad we’ve lost the “space race”.

[COBOL2Java]

"These old Obamaphones suck! When you gonna get us those new flexible Obamaphones?"

[Secret Agent Man]

wow, so Jabba the Hut voted Obama....

[who_would_fardels_bear]

All we need is a pair of glasses that projects whatever seemingly small or large size object we need on our retinas. The glasses will have a built-in headset so we can hear/talk. They will emit some sort of infrared light that we can move our fingers through to simulate key strokes, swirls, etc.

No need for any kind of gadget, no matter how big or how small or how bendable.

[bramps]

Did you steal those from Maxwell Smart?

[Boogieman]

Another feature for your dream smartphone...

Motion detection on the retina to move a cursor, combined with wink detection. Look at something on the screen, and close your left eye to “left-click” the cursor, or your right eye to “right-click”. Come up with some simple wink patterns to handle different click/select/drag actions.

[Boogieman]

When they really implement this stuff successfully, it won’t be so flimsy as a total package. They have stuff like, a cylinder that the flat screen rolls up into. It could be a keychain size, for a small phone, or something the size of a pocket flashlight, to roll out a tablet. You’ll still have something solid and substantial to hang out to, I think.

[USNBandit]

[Gil4]

That’s me, too, but I did have one phone (RIP) that could have benefited from this feature.

[Repeat Offender]

Roll it up. Drop it. Squish it in your backpack. Step on it - without any damage.

Flimsy, squishy, and not a rigid component in its body? Sounds like an expensive waste of time. They should name it "the Republican."

[Nowhere Man]

Too bad we’ve lost the “space race”.

We might be able to make bendable phones but we cannot get a man to the Moon or even into orbit. Still, think back to the technology of 1970, we were able to achieve both the latter back then.

2012 Man: Look, we got bendable phones we can carry!

1970 Man: Yeah, but we can get a man to the Moon, you can't even get a man into orbit.

2012 Man: .............

[Dr. Sivana]

Nothing new under the sun!

I prefer the classic model.

[Dr. Sivana]

Nothing new under the sun!

I prefer the classic model.