Following reports that Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd. is preparing to launch a foldable smartphone, the company today debuted a bendable mobile display it hails as “unbreakable.”

The new screen (pictured) is based on organic light-emitting diode technology. OLED panels already ship in a number of devices including Apple Inc.’s iPhone X and are inherently flexible. However, they normally have to be covered with protective glass that makes the frame rigid.

Samsung’s new OLED panel substitutes the glass with a flexible plastic cover that enables the screen to bend and curve while still shielding it from harm. The company didn’t share any of the display’s physical specifications in today’s announcement. On the end other hand, Samsung did back up its claim about the panel’s durability with the results of an external assessment.

The test was carried out by UL LLC, a safety certification company that works with the U.S. Department of Labor. Samsung said that the screen survived 26 successive drop tests from a height of 1.2 meters, which is just shy of four feet.

The display can apparently withstand extreme temperatures as well. According to Samsung, UL subjected the panel to temperatures ranging from -32 degrees Celsius (-25.6 Fahrenheit) to 71 degrees Celsius (159.8 Fahrenheit) and reported it “continued to function normally with no damage to its front, sides or edges.”

Samsung said it believes that the technology could be useful for more than just smartphones. The company said that its plastic-covered OLED displays is expected to prove viable for use in tablets, in-vehicle displays and game consoles among other devices.

Samsung didn’t share a time frame for when the technology will hit the market. The only clues come from the reports that have surfaced about the company’s bendable phone plans in recent quarters. Most recently, sources told the Wall Street Journal this month that Samsung plans to launch the handset early next year.

In a time when handset sales are stagnating, an innovation like a bendable smartphone may just be what’s needed to rekindle user enthusiasm. Samsung could certainly use a new differentiator in its competition with Apple. The iPhone maker is working on improvements not only to its mobile hardware but also to key services such as Apple Maps, which is currently undergoing a drastic overhaul.

Photo: Samsung