The Stardom Magazine | Debut Issue 19
Like it or lump it: LG's flexible phone's bumpy screen
LG has confirmed that its flexible screen smartphone, the LG G Flex, can develop bumps on its
display if users subject the handset to excessive flexing.
The phone, one of two in the world with a flexible display - the other being Samsung's Galaxy
Round - is set to arrive in the US in March but is already on sale throughout Asia and select
European countries.
And it is in Asia, or Korea to be more precise, where early adopters have started reporting issues with the phone's display. Little bumps have started to pop up on the screen. The issue
was first reported by the Korea Times and the story led LG to release a statement reassuring
existing and potential owners that the perceived defect will not affect the phone's performance.
"Because key components inside the G Flex such as the glass cover, OLED display, battery and
frame are elastic, excessive or frequent force that flattens the device may produce bumps,"
the LG statement, issued to the Korea Times, reads. LG also stresses that the issue has "no relation to the performance and quality of the device," and that the bumps will disappear over
time.
However, the company said that the bumps are a result of the device being excessively flexed:
"Please don't try to use frequent, excessive force on the device or the screen. The reason
we've made the G Flex screen elastic is to protect the device from damage from sudden impacts such as being sat on or laid down on."
Flexible display technology is going to have a huge role to play in the future of consumer electronics but for now the flexibility of phones like the LG G Flex is limited as current batteries,
processors, internal storage and other components are still very much rigid in comparison.
Launched in November, LG has sold over 13,000 of its G Flex handsets.