The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office has recently published a patent application which was filed by Apple.  The application was for “an electronic device [that] may have a flexible portion that allows [it] to be folded.”  The patent for this application was granted in September of 2016, shortly before a patent for a similar product was granted for Apple: flexible displays with touch sensors with parts bending like a book opening.

Apple has previously been given patents for flexible screens, a 360 degree screen, that wraps around the entire device, and for glasses, to rival the unsuccessful Google Glass.  The flexible screens can be applied to watches, phones, laptops, and tablets alike, to give all of these devices ‘flipping capability.’

So far this year, Samsung has released a new luxury flip phone with a touchscreen in Asian markets, so it makes sense that Apple and LG would work together to create one as well.

In an industry all about innovation, a modern take on an old school device would be interesting.