Could a smartphone revolution happen in 2024?

Analysts predict that smartphones with 'self-healing' screens will hit the market within five years.

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Could a smartphone revolution happen in 2024?

In a report compiling top technology predictions for 2024 and beyond, analyst firm CCS Insight stated that smartphone manufacturers will begin producing phones with "self-healing" screens within five years. Meanwhile, companies have been working on self-repairing smartphone screen technology for several years.

SELF-REPAIRING SCREENS

According to analyst firm CCS Insight, smartphones with self-repairing screens could start appearing on the market by 2028. According to a report cited by Donanımhaber, these types of screens will use a new “nano-coating” that reacts when the surface of the screen is scratched and comes into contact with air, filling in the resulting defect. On the other hand, companies have been talking about self-repairing smartphone screen technology for several years. Therefore, self-repairing screens are ceasing to be science fiction. Of course, the most important issue here is to set expectations correctly.

For example, LG was promoting self-repair technology in its smartphones as early as 2013. If you recall, a phone called the LG G Flex was released, which had a curved screen and a "self-healing" coating on the back cover. At the time, it was not fully explained how this technology worked.

It seems that companies will focus on this issue again. On the other hand, we are not talking about shattered screens miraculously coming back together. The defects to be repaired will consist only of minor cosmetic scratches. Several other phone manufacturers have also included self-healing materials in their smartphones.

In 2017, Motorola filed a patent application for a screen made of "shape-memory polymer" that repairs itself when cracked. The idea here was to enable the cracks to heal when heat is applied to the material.

This technology has not yet been used in a commercially successful phone. And there are several obstacles to launching such phones on a mass scale. Chief among these is that companies have to invest heavily in research and development. Furthermore, it is necessary to market and sell phones in large volumes. However, seeing the breakthrough in panel technologies (foldable, rollable screens), it is thought that these can be overcome.

News Source: 12punto