LG's bizarre, but impressive prototype display has 'the highest rate of elongation' in the industry. I didn't know that measurement existed.

Flexibility may be the next cutting edge in hardware. Monitor manufacturers are experimenting pliable projects, in addition to the bendy CPU that performs poorly outside of its one-off party trick.

LG Display has been the latest to experiment with this new technology, revealing a prototype stretchy screen that can be stretched by up to 50% when tugged (via Tom's Hardware). A prototype was demonstrated in Seoul on November 8th at LG Science Park, as part of the stretchable display project. Around 100 other South Korean tech stakeholder were also present.

The Xeneon Flex OLED Monitor, released by Corsair a few years ago, is not the first bendy display we've seen. The LG prototype is different in that you can do more than just stretch it. You can also scrunch, pull, and twist it. (Although it's not yet known if you can bop it.)

Putting aside the dated reference (does Gen Z understand how crushing it is to flick it when you meant to bop it?) LG's prototype monitor is also much smaller than the Corsair model. LG's flexible screen can display RGB colour with 100 PPI on 12 inches and then expand to 18 inches. LG notes in their press release that this is "the highest elongation rate in the industry" and "exceeds the original national project's 20% elongation target."

Even though it's impressive, I can't help but feel that scrunching expensive tech up is a bad idea. Monitors are hardware, but they haven't always been the most durable of products when faced with, say, a flung game controller. In the case of the Corsair Monitor, it's also not just that you have to give it a good whack to expand the display but the awful sounds of protestation from the frame.

Isn't that a lot of new failure points?

In the press release, LG states that the new prototype can be stretched 10,000 times and still maintain a clear image, even in extreme environments, such as exposure to high or low temperatures, and external shocks. This might seem like a bold statement, but if the prototype is ever brought to market, cracked phone screens could be a thing in the past.

The LG Display prototype is still a long way from any consumer-oriented environment, but LG also shared some conceptual use cases. LG's wearable application, which would allow a firefighter to receive real-time information via a stretchable panel attached to their uniform, was designed to highlight the prototype's durability. Even if that ends up being a pipedream, a wearable device that does some real-world good would make a difference.