After foldable phones, Samsung plans to bring stretchable phones

If foldable phones weren’t enough for Samsung, the company is now planning to bring a new smartphone with display that can be stretched out to become a mini tablet.

In a recently discovered patent by Patently Mobile, smartphone manufacturer Samsung is planning to introduce a smartphone that can be stretched out to be a mini tablet for added space for viewing entertainment content or for a larger spreadsheet.

In the patent, Samsung mentioned that their intention covers an electronic device that may include a flexible display number, a fastening member overlapping the display member in a plan view, a housing unit including a first and a second case member. It will also include a hinge unit for the device to be rotatable in the plan view, along with some other components.

The figure illustrates a smartphone with side bezels that could be grabbed and then pulled left and right in order to expand the display to the size of a mini tablet. More patents also demonstrate different fastening members and hinge configurations that can be adopted by Samsung to support the display back.

As explained by Patently Mobile, the side of the phone remain locked into position until an icon is pressed that would unlock the side bezels and further letting users to expand the display by equaling moving the bezels left and right simultaneously.

The patent was filed earlier this year and as for all the patents, it is not known if this technology will ever come to life or not.