iPhone 6 Rumors: New Apple Patent for Wrap Around Display

The iPhone 5c in a file photo. (Andrew Burton/Getty Images)

The iPhone 6 rumors continue flying, and the latest is a patent filed by patent that has been published in Europe detailing a wrap around display. 

“Without a doubt, this patent application is one of the best of the year ” reports Patently Apple. “The design would work by essentially leveraging the flexible OLED [organic light-emitting diode] screen tech we’ve previously seen with Samsung prototypes, protected by sapphire glass and wrapped around a LiquidMetal form factor. The patent, quite literally, represents three of the most cutting-edge construction materials for a future iPhone that one could image, based on existing tech.”

As far as what the wrap around screen would be for, the patent details:

“The electronic device may have a touch sensor, accelerometer, gyroscope, and other sensors for gathering input such as user input. The electronic device may, for example, use one or more sensors to gather information on rotational motion of the device about the longitudinal axis, tilt events, and other motion of the electronic device. In response to detection of these device motions, the electronic device can display content on the flexible display layer.”

According to analysis by iPhone 6 News Blog, this suggests that the user could use all sides of the iPhone as a display. “It could allow the user to use the gripping hand to control actions of the phone as well.”

The patent describes the device displaying content that moves on the surface of the flexible display. “For example, the electronic device may display pages of content on the display layer in response to tilt events or other motions of the device.”

That could mean one purpose of the wrap around tech would be rolling text and visuals.

“Just as you can spin the iPad and iPhone around and the screen adjusts accordingly, this future iPhone’s front and back may be all just relative terms from a screen standpoint,” the blog’s analysis says. “The phone headset might be located on one side, but you might be able to use both sides equally for manipulating the screen.”