LG reveals rollable smartphone with expanded screen

The man in the video spreads out a screen rolled up in the back of a smartphone, with the phone display expanding to the size of a tablet PC.

LG Electronics Inc.’s rollable smartphone made an appearance at CES 2021, the world’s biggest annual tech exposition.

It is the second device under LG’s Explorer Project, the first of which was the dual-display Wing smartphone, the world’s first rotatable T-shaped phone, released last September.

The home appliance giant teased the second of its next-generation concept phone in a virtual exhibition during CES 2021 on Jan. 11 to draw global attention to the new model. But it showed no details of its specifications. 

Last September when LG released the Wing smartphone, it offered small glimpses of the rollable phone: a screen that is rolled up to one side and can be spread out as needed. During this year’s CES event, it disclosed the front side of the new model and displayed how it operates. The screen resembles a roll of camera film that can be pulled out. 

In the video, the man is watching an LG news conference on the rollable smartphone. When the folded screen of the smartphone with a 6.8-inch screen is scrolled out, it reveals the other part of the screen, expanding it into a 7.4-inch screen, as large as a tablet PC and having a higher aspect ratio of 1600 x 2428 vs 1080 x 2428.

FINAL TESTING PHASE

LG is expected to become the world's first company to market rollable smartphones. Chinese smartphone brand Oppo revealed its rollable smartphone model last year, but it has not brought the model to markets yet.

LG is in the final testing phase of the rollable phone at its plant in Pyeongtaek, South Korea, while it already registered the relevant patents late last year. Industry watchers expect LG to take the wraps off the rollable smartphone as early as March. 

Last month, Google released an emulator for a rollable smartphone on the website for Android developers. An emulator is a software application that allows engineers to run apps in a virtual environment with an emulated device in a development environment.

According to Display Supply Chain Consultants, a research firm, the market for both foldable and rollable smartphones is expected to post an annual increase of nearly twofold by 2025.

“In this rapidly evolving era where we need to deal with unexpected changes, we will provide solutions that enhance our consumers’ valuable daily lives and offer convenience and fun,” LG Electronics Chief Executive Kwon Bong-seok said in the virtual new conference at CES 2021.

dong2@hankyung.com

Yeonhee Kim edited this article.