Foldables, Rollables, and Beyond: The Shape of Screens to Come
The age of the static, rigid screen is ending. Over the past five years, mobile and computing displays have undergone a rapid transformation—from the first foldable prototypes to commercially viable smartphones, laptops, and concept devices that can bend, roll, stretch, and even disappear into the body of the device.
In 2025, the display industry is on the brink of its most radical reinvention yet. Screens are no longer just windows into digital content; they are becoming adaptive surfaces that reshape themselves based on context, usage, and human interaction.
Welcome to the era of morphing displays—the new frontier in device design.
1. The Foldable Era Matures
Foldables started as futuristic novelties. Today, they’re reaching a level of refinement that finally feels mainstream-ready.
What’s changing now?
- Improved hinge durability
New water-drop and floating-hinge designs reduce creasing and mechanical stress. - Stronger ultra-thin glass
A new generation of UTG materials enables smoother folds and better scratch resistance. - Lighter and thinner devices
Engineering breakthroughs are reducing weight while increasing battery efficiency. - Less visible creases
Advanced layering and optimized OLED substrates make the fold line nearly invisible.
Where foldables shine
- As pocket-sized productivity devices
- As entertainment-first smartphones
- As dual-purpose phone-tablet hybrids
The foldable has moved from “concept tech” to a credible successor to the flat smartphone.
2. Rollables: The Next Big Leap
If foldables are the present, rollables might be the future.
Rollable displays extend horizontally or vertically, expanding their size like scrolls. Instead of unfolding, the screen emerges from inside the device.
Why rollables matter
- They offer variable screen sizes on demand—no hinge required.
- They maintain rigid-glass form factors while rolled in.
- They eliminate the crease problem entirely.
Early use cases
- Smartphones that expand into mini-tablets
- Wrist-worn displays that wrap and unwrap
- Monitors that extend to ultrawide formats
- TVs that retract into compact bases
Rollables promise a flexibility that feels more seamless and elegant than folds—if manufacturers can solve the challenges of durability and dust protection.
3. Stretchable Displays: The Wild Card
Stretchable—or “elastic”—displays are still experimental, but they offer the most futuristic vision of all.
Imagine screens that you can:
- pull like rubber
- twist without distortion
- compress or expand dynamically
These displays use flexible OLEDs layered on top of micro-structured substrates that deform while maintaining electrical conductivity.
Potential applications
- Wearables that conform perfectly to the body
- Automotive dashboards with shape-shifting layouts
- Medical devices that wrap around limbs
- Soft robotics with embedded visual interfaces
These screens won’t hit mainstream devices immediately, but they set the stage for the long-term future of human-device integration.
4. Transparent and Invisible Displays
While bendable screens evolve, another frontier is forming: displays that vanish when not in use.
Emerging technologies
- Transparent OLEDs for augmented windows and retail installations
- Projection-based surfaces that turn walls into screens
- Smart glass that switches from opaque to display mode
- Holographic emitters embedded in household objects
The goal: digital interfaces that blend into physical environments, not compete with them.
In the future, your “screen” might be your desk, your mirror, your glasses—or thin air.
5. AI + Adaptive Displays: Smarter Screens, Not Just New Shapes
A screen that changes shape is useful.
A screen that changes with context is revolutionary.
AI will take display evolution even further by enabling:
- context-aware resizing
- ambient brightness and color temperature optimization
- real-time content adaptation across screen formats
- intuitive gesture and eye-tracking control
- seamless transitions between folded, rolled, or stretched modes
In other words, the screen of the future isn’t just flexible—it’s intelligent.
6. The New Experience Layer: From Static Layouts to Dynamic Spaces
Traditional UI design is built for fixed rectangles.
But with foldables, rollables, and shape-shifting displays, designers must rethink interface paradigms:
- Adaptive layouts that recompose themselves instantly
- Multimodal UI that blends touch, voice, and gestures
- Spatial interfaces that grow or contract
- Multi-zone displays with different functions in each shape mode
The future screen doesn’t just display information—it transforms the experience itself.
7. What Comes After Screens?
As interfaces become more ambient and pervasive, the long-term future may not be screens at all.
We’re watching the early formation of:
- spatial computing headsets that replace panels with holograms
- light-field displays that project 3D objects into space
- neural interfaces that bypass traditional displays entirely
The endgame is an interface that adapts to the user, not the other way around.
Screens—as we know them—will one day be optional.