What is folding glass? Is it the future of the phone?

Samsung Galaxy Z Flip is the first folding phone with a glass screen. Previous devices like the Samsung Galaxy Fold all have plastic screens. Curved glass technology can be said as the basic element to create better folding phones and tablets.

Foldable glass is practically not foldable, it can only be bent

"Foldable glass" is a misleading term . Screens with folding glass are actually not fully folded - there will be no sharp marks like when you fold a piece of paper. Instead, the glass only bends.

When a device like the Samsung Galaxy Z Flip closes, there will be a gap between the two halves of the glass. In addition, around the screen there are edges rising, preventing the two glass faces from directly touching when it is closed.

In other words, foldable glass is an ultra-thin glass that can bend hundreds of thousands of times without breaking. It cannot be folded to the point where two halves of the glass touch.

Curved glass is not new

Many companies in all fields have been researching this technology. Samsung purchased ultra-thin folding glasses from Korean manufacturer Doowoo Insys, but didn't reveal much about the technology.

Corning, famous for its tough , broken-resistant Gorilla Glass , used on iPhones and other smartphones, is actively working on bendable glass to equip electronics. Corning created a bendable glass called "Willow Glass".

Curved glass is not entirely new. According to Corning's senior vice president of optical communications technology, Claudio Mazzali, Corning has been bending glass for nearly 50 years. Corning created flexible flexible fiberglass used in fiber optic cables, which can be bent into a 90-degree angle and continue to function perfectly.

Although bendable glass is not new, one of the challenges is how to make it super thin. " To bend to a very small angle, you have to make a glass that is much thinner than what you have today, " Corly's Polly Chu said. The thinner the glass, the more you can bend.

Put bendable glass on the phone

Creating ultra-thin curved glass is hard, but how can such thin glass become durable and resistant to breakage like toughened Gorilla Glass on current smartphones?

Perhaps you've forgotten the impressive power of Gorilla Glass and similar technologies: the glass on the screen of a modern smartphone can be tattered without breaking, or even scratching. Gorilla Glass is harder than conventional metals. That's for sure.

John Bayne, head of Corning's Gorilla Glass, explained: " With a glass screen, you're challenging the laws of physics, in which to be able to bend into a very small angle, you have to make the glass thin. possible, but you also have to make sure it survives a drop and resistance is damaged . "

Bayne says that Corning is working on keeping glass bendable and improving its resistance to fracture. He said that putting Corning's Willow Glass through an ion exchange process used to create super-strong Gorilla Glass will reduce Willow Glass's bending ability.

Corning still expects bendable glass for electronics to become popular in the next few years. How does Corning and other companies address production challenges? That's something they will never reveal. It makes sense, because there are countless competitors on the market, and all are entering a fierce race.

Curved glass is the future of foldable devices.

Why is folding glass so important?

In a video revealing the Galaxy Z Flip, Samsung says it has jumped from polymer (plastic) displays to ultra-thin folding glass. It is not just an impressive technological leap. Clear glass is a better material to produce smartphone screens.

To overcome the challenges associated with bendable glass, foldable devices like the Samsung Galaxy Fold, Motorola Razr, and Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Fold use plastic screens, which feel like a screen protector. made of plastic. This screen may not feel as good as a glass screen, but that's the last thing you should worry about. These soft plastic screens are more prone to scratches and damage compared to glass screens. Motorola says that "dents are normal " on a folding Razr smartphone with a plastic screen.

With the glass screen, you will not encounter "protrusions" on the screen. They will not scratch and damage as easily as a plastic screen. That's why today's smartphones - from iPhones to Android - have glass touch screens. Glass is a much more durable material, much more robust in real-life conditions. Your nails won't damage the glass screen, but they can easily leave a mark on the plastic screen.

Will foldable devices be the future of mobile? Maybe so. And bendable glass is the future of foldable devices.