Folding smartphones are only just getting started and, while Samsung is currently winning the race, it looks like LG Display might be giving Apple a bit of a boost. The South Korean company, according to a report from Digitimes, has been commissioned to develop a folding display for Apple, of all people.

LG keeping the lights on

Which makes a strange sort of sense, if you think about it. Even though the tech-maker still has some interesting ideas, it’s also rumoured to be getting out of the smartphone game. And there’s probably some spare smartphone screen R&D lying around, doing nothing.

But the report, which cites unnamed industry sources, doesn’t go into a whole lot of detail. If accurate, it’s possible that LG Display will only be coming up with the design and another entity will take over production for Apple’s iPhones.

It’s also possible that Apple’s eventual folding iPhone will have a Samsung-made OLED panel on its face. The other South Korean company, MacRumours reports, supplied Apple with a bunch of folding screen samples to fiddle with in 2020, meaning Apple might be considering their options when it comes to a folding handset.

Which is on the cards for Apple. Speculation is that Apple will launch a folding handset between 7.3in and 7.6in in size, with support for the Apple Pencil. Since the company is known for tightly put-together hardware, it makes sense that they’d want to know exactly what’s available in terms of folding screens before committing. But don’t get too excited about a folding iPhone — whether LG, Samsung or some other party assists with the display, it’ll likely only turn up from 2023.

Source: Digitimes (Chinese) via MacRumours