“There are good things I see on Samsung phones that I wish were in my iPhone. I wish Apple would use them and could use them, and I don't know if Samsung would stop us."
- Steve Wozniak
The smartphone industry has been evolving at break-neck speed, of late, with key players releasing updated and upgraded flagship smartphones every year. This technology race is close, and there is no telling who will succeed or which product will be the next iPhone X or Galaxy fold. To the rest of the world, this industry and its developments may seem fast but if you look at patent developments, you will realize that this has been happening gradually over more than 2 decades. With the most recent announcements from Samsung, Apple and other major players, all getting ready to launch foldable display smartphones, the industry is abuzz with new speculation.
So far, not much information is available about where these key players are at, in developing this new form of smartphone display technology. There is speculation that foldable smart phones are just around the corner, but no real world development has happened, nor is the technological aspects of the product overtly discussed. In such a situation, patent data analysis is one of the most reliable and insightful methods that can shed light into this otherwise unclear technology space.
