Could this be the world's first glimpse of Apple's long-awaited smartphone?
Ever since early 2011, the world has been clamoring for the illusive iPhone 5. Most people were convinced that Apple (NASDAQ: AAPL [FREE Stock Trend Analysis]) would release the next iteration of the iPhone last fall, sparking a media firestorm unlike any other. The media fueled this fire, of course, knowing that several thousand clicks were only an Apple story away.
After the dust settled and the product had been unveiled, however, consumers learned the hard way that sometimes it's best to avoid getting too excited for a device that didn't officially exist. Instead of the iPhone 5, Apple released the iPhone 4S, an upgrade that was initially viewed as a disappointment. That "disappointment" later went on to sell a record-breaking number of units (37 million in one quarter!) by harnessing the voice-activated power of Siri.
This year, we are all but certain to get the iPhone 5. It may not be called the iPhone 5. In fact, if the naming of the third-generation iPad is any indication, there's a good chance that the iPhone 5 will simply be called the "iPhone."
But considering how accurate the iPad 3 rumors turned out to be (name excluded), it isn't crazy to think that the iPhone 5's biggest rumor -- which claims that the smartphone will receive a size and/or form factor adjustment -- is true.
If that's the case, then Atmel Corporation (NASDAQ: ATML) might have just given us the first glimpse of Apple's next major release. In this impressive video (via Engadget), Atmel shows off its new bendable touch screen technology.
While Atmel is not the only company producing a bendable touch screen, this is one of the better ones to come around. It's also one of the first that appears to be ready for production. Atmel is promoting this technology -- referred to as XSense Touch Sensors -- as something that can be implemented right now. By comparison, most other bendable screens have been promoted in concept form only.
To be fair though, Atmel's video is very much a concept. Look closely and you'll notice that the iPad-looking device in the woman's hands is nothing more than a digital concoction produced for the purpose of the promo video. It is wholly possible that Atmel has a working prototype that is just as good. But that doesn't appear to be what we saw in that video.
The only question now is this: if Apple is interested in bendable screen technology, what would the company do with it?
Reference: http://bit.ly/IOlfis
