The Samsung Galaxy S4 has only just been released in the United States, but we've already got certain individuals drawing up Galaxy S5 concepts, with bendable screen features and more.
In addition to dreaming up new designs, though, we've also been able to glimpse into certain new specs and features that might actually show up in a next-gen smartphone, including, perhaps, the Samsung Galaxy S5.
New patents uncovered by Android Authority showcase a number of different features that could potentially be found in a Galaxy S5 or another next-gen Samsung device. The company is allegedly working on flexible displays, new camera technology and even an all-around curved smartphone.
We've known about the flexible display for some time, but not much has been detailed concerning how the technology actually works.
According to Android Authority, "It will be able to detect various aspects of how users bend the display, such as folding angle and curvature of the bend, which will then adjust the output image so that it displays correctly."
"There's also support for commonly used zoom in and out features, similar to 'pinch zooming,' where a specific part of the display can be bent convexly or concavely in order to adjust the zoom of the displayed image."
The most interesting patent on display, though, is the one that gently curves the entire smartphone form. Possible reasons for curving the device could be to improve viewing angles all around, as well as making the handset fit better in one's hands.
Another patent points toward improving camera technology, which isn't much of a surprise, considering every phone maker wants to tout their next smartphone's photo-taking capabilities. Instead of first showing up on a Galaxy S5, though, there's a chance this could be related to some of those Galaxy S4 Zoom rumors floating around.
Samsung even patented a new feature turning pages in eBooks, "which casts a shadow over the text behind the page being turned." It's not a particularly exciting breakthrough, but it's yet another item we may see in upcoming product announcements.
Of course, just because Samsung patented these technologies doesn't mean they're going to show up in the Galaxy S5, or any phone for that matter. But they do offer intriguing peeks into what the company is developing going forward.
