We have seen rollable TVs showcased, rollable smartphones being readied for market and now there is evidence that LG is preparing a rollable screen laptop. The idea sounds intriguing – the laptop can easily be smaller / thinner thanks to the screen rolling away. However, LG has gone one step further to make the keyboard rollable too – so the whole device can be retracted into a long box shaped object.
Screenshots of the patent were shared on Twitter by GadgetsData, summing up the invention as "display, keyboard & webcam on a single stick". The source indicates that you could roll out the display to be approx 13.3-inches but if needed you could roll it out further and benefit from a 17-inch display.
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The patent file screenshots, which I've embedded above, don't provide a lot more detail about the possibilities but are mostly focussed upon how the screen rolls out and doesn't flop over without using some kind of stand. You can see in some of the images that the screen will protrude from an arc shaped slot in the base which will help it stand up rigidly, and provide an 'immersive' curve. I'm not sure if there will be a way to tilt the screen back and forth like a regular laptop hinge will allow users to do.
Liliputing noticed another LG application of rollable screen tech recently for both laptops and tablets. In this separate patent a 13.3-inch device could expand to a 17-inch model thanks to rollable screen technology.
Last week HEXUS reported upon the hands-on demo of the Oppo X rollable screen smartphone.
