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Samsung's 'unbreakable' display survives UL scrutiny
Phone makers have promised unbreakable phone screens for years, but they tend to involve awkward compromises like soft, scratchable surfaces. Samsung Display might just fulfill that promise, though. Underwriters Laboratories certified an "unbreakable" Samsung panel (
not yet pictured) as capable of surviving military-grade durability tests without damage. This included dropping it 26 times from a height of four feet [1.2 meters] and subjecting it to extreme temperatures. It even survived a drop test at 6 feet [1.8 meters] without any battle scars.Update: Samsung Display posted a video of its new screen [1m55s video], showing how its lightweight plastic cover compares to traditional glass. In the video it survives several strikes from a hammer with no damage to show for it.
Also at The Verge.
(Score: 3, Interesting) by takyon on Thursday July 26 2018, @10:41PM (9 children)
The flexibility of this Samsung screen is what gives it a credible description of "unbreakable". For normal usage of dropping your smartphone a few feet onto the pavement, or even drunkenly slinging it at a brick wall, the flexibility of the screen should prevent shattering. Which is why it seems to have done well in these tests (although, why don't they just keep increasing the height until it *does* break). The rest of the phone might become the weakest link, especially if you are hitting it with a hammer.
That said, I doubt these initial attempts will result in the ultra-flat bendy e-paper of your dreams. And if we get that form factor, it will have a flexible, thin, and very low capacity battery.
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(Score: 3, Funny) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday July 26 2018, @10:57PM
...and an Intel i9 processor.
(Score: 2) by archfeld on Thursday July 26 2018, @10:59PM
I can dream !! It seems that is the only place the advertised B$ actually exists. The lack of truth in advertising here in the US has reached epic proportions. It seems to be legal to show or say ANYTHING as long as there is a nano print disclaimer, or a reference to 50 pages of exemptions on a web site somewhere on to net.
For the NSA : Explosives, guns, assassination, conspiracy, primers, detonators, initiators, main charge, nuclear charge
(Score: 2) by JoeMerchant on Friday July 27 2018, @12:02AM (6 children)
"Unbreakable" plastic is no surprise.
"Unbreakable" and as scratch resistant as Gorilla Glass - that would be impressive.
One weak link in big screen TVs these days is that the screens are way too easy to scratch.
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(Score: 2) by c0lo on Friday July 27 2018, @12:10AM (3 children)
Size and planned obsolescence are orthogonal.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aoFiw2jMy-0 https://soylentnews.org/~MichaelDavidCrawford
(Score: 2) by JoeMerchant on Friday July 27 2018, @12:21AM (2 children)
We bought a 42" screen 11 years ago, and were essentially gifted a 55" screen 2 years ago. I like 'em dumb, they're both driven by NUCs, and the old one has had a couple of generations by now.
10 years hence, if I'm in the market for a new one, I'll be looking long and hard at longevity parameters, doubtful anything to do with specs, today's specs are just fine for me. My eyes haven't been good enough to appreciate 8k resolution from across the living room for a long, long time.
🌻🌻 [google.com]
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Friday July 27 2018, @01:52PM (1 child)
Care to elaborate which models you're using? I too am looking for a dumb screen driven by a small computer running XBMC/Plex.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Friday July 27 2018, @06:39PM
I have a Samsung just a few years old that's a "dumb TV". They still make them, you just have to look. Often the really large models on display will be "smart", and you can find smaller models boxed on the shelves without that stuff. I haven't looked around on the 'net though, might be someplace you can order larger dumb TV's.
(Score: 2) by takyon on Friday July 27 2018, @12:29AM (1 child)
Yeah, I've wary about the scratch resistance, and a drop test isn't sufficient for that. Maybe a "pocket full of coins and keys" test or just start scratching the screen with various objects.
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(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Friday July 27 2018, @04:48PM
There is no escaping the cell phone case. USE ONE, or your phone will be trashed.