Samsung In January this year, he filed a patent with the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO), which was published last week. It describes a new smartphone format that appears to be quite standard, but whose back is actually covered by what would be an invisible secondary screen.

It is important to keep in mind that companies tend to patent many times to prevent other companies from stepping on them, so it is likely that Samsung will not launch any device based on the patent in the medium to long term. On the other hand, YotaPhone already implemented this concept years ago by adding an e-ink panel, and the Xiaomi Mi 11 Ultra incorporated a mini-screen on the back.

From this point of view, it seems that Samsung has stepped on things that have already been invented with its new patent, but the reality is that the proposal of the South Korean giant has an important nuance that sets it apart from the competition (which, in turn, almost every brand has proposed something else). and it is a fact, as we have already said, the back screen is invisible, especially when not in use, as it would be transparent.

Said rear screen, which is possibly OLED (and that’s in case Samsung releases a device based on the patent), it can display system controls, notifications, pop-ups, camera viewers and other things. You can see in the patent image that the elements may not take up the entire rear screen, but then we will have to see how it looks when it is translated into reality.

A smartphone with an invisible rear display patented by Samsung could be helped by using, for example, a rear camera for taking selfies, which would compromise the front and rear cameras, as the latter could be used for all purposes. Second, may raise privacy issues due to the possible unwanted display of data through the rear screen if not properly covered by the hand while using the smartphone, so the company may need to consider additional protections such as limiting the viewing angle.

Smartphones are trying to reinvent themselves after being pretty much the same but better for a long time. Although still not a mass phenomenon, foldable smartphones are gaining traction, so the next big thing in the not-too-distant future could be Samsung’s proposal to lead to a device that isn’t flexible.