Remember the time when #BendGate was the talk of the town? Although it was inspired by bending issues associated with Apple’s iPhone 6 Plus, some really wished to have a phone that could bend.
There’s good news for those who are tired of their rigid, block-shaped phone. A small Chinese startup is claiming that they are all set to unveil a smartphone that can bend all the way around your wrist.
The device, which works like any other smartphone, has been developed by Moxi Group and will feature a flexible touchscreen that will work even when looped and worn like a watch or a bracelet.
The idea of a bendable smartphone is not a new one and major tech companies like Samsung and LG have also been working on flexible touchscreens and developing products.
While Samsung has already tried curved screens in its Edge series that wrap around the device from the front to the sides, LG has its “Flex” phones, which are nearly curved to the shape of your head. But these devices bend nowhere near as much as Moxi claims its phone does.
The company claims it has already produced a prototype of the phone and plans to put 100,000 units on sale in China by the end of this year.
Moxi’s device will be first if it’s kind, if it manages to pull it off, as no other company is known to have brought a fully bendable smartphone to market.
World’s thinnest material graphene is used in these bendy screens. Graphene is also a strong, light, transparent and flexible matter.
However, the initial version of the phone will only have black and white displays. The company says it’s aiming for a full color version, which is more technically challenging to make, by 2018.
The black-and-white phones are expected to sell for around 5,000 yuan ($760) each in China. The cheapest version of Apple’s iPhone 6S retails for 5,288 yuan (US$806).
The article originally appeared on CNN Money
