Apples foldable iPhone could borrow screen tech from Kindles

Date:
Tue, 17 May 2022 09:25:23 +0000

Description:
The iPhone Flip could sport an E Ink cover display to help improve the
battery life.

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Weve been waiting years for the iPhone Flip and well probably be waiting a
few years more, but when it does arrive it could be quite different to any current foldable phone.

Thats because, according to Ming-Chi Kuo an analyst with a good track record for Apple information the phone might have an E Ink cover display.

Apple is apparently testing E Inks Electronic Paper Display (EPD) for use on the secondary screen of a foldable phone though its worth noting that even
if Kuo is right, the fact that Apple is testing something doesnt mean the company will necessarily end up using it. Apple is testing E Ink's Electronic Paper Display (EPD) for future foldable device's cover screen & tablet-like applications. The color EPD has the potential to become a mainstream solution for foldable devices' must-have cover/second screen thanks to its excellent power-saving. May 17, 2022 See more

Still, such a display could make sense. This EPD tech is a lot like the
screen on a Kindle, in that its designed to replicate the look of paper, and to be incredibly low-power, so the cover screen could be always on without draining much battery.

And this particular tech goes a step beyond what any of Amazons Kindles currently offer, as its also a color screen.

Kuo goes on to suggest that this tech could, for the above reasons, become widely used for secondary screens on foldable phones, so it might not just be Apple that uses it. We could certainly imagine other companies copying the idea if Apples foldable successfully uses this tech.

Interestingly, Kuo also says that Apple is testing an EPD with tablet-like applications. Its not totally clear what's meant by that, but it could be
that Apple is working on some sort of e-reader or drawing tablet as well. Analysis: pros and cons of an EPD

While an EPD has obvious advantages most notably how easy it is on a devices battery it also has some downsides.

If youve ever used an e-reader youll know they tend to have extremely low refresh rates, making them feel sluggish to do much on. In some cases the refresh rate can be increased, but this often leads to ghosting. Theyre ideal then for reading books on, but less so for things that require constant,
rapid inputs, or for animations and videos.

That means an EPD cover display probably wouldnt work very well as a full-featured smartphone interface, like the cover screen on the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 3 . But it could be ideal as a less interactive screen thats more designed to show notifications and the time, a bit like the smaller
cover screen on the Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 3 .

So if Apple does use an EPD on the iPhone Flip, it will probably be more like the Z Flip 3s secondary screen than the Z Fold 3s. These limitations also
mean that even if other phone makers do start doing the same, there will
still be a market for conventional secondary screens. Check out all the best foldable phones



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Link to news story: https://www.techradar.com/news/apples-foldable-iphone-could-borrow-screen-tech -from-kindles/


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