But now something unusual is happening in the smartphone world: Apple and Google are copying Samsung.
Back in 2015, Samsung brought out the Galaxy S6, a premium handset, and alongside it, the S6 Edge — a sister device that featured a curved screen along the edges.
It followed it up with the S7 and the S7 Edge in 2016. Then last month it announced the Galaxy S8, which makes the curved screen standard and radically shrinks the bezels at the top and bottom of the device so the front is almost nothing but OLED screen.
While the S8 hasn’t officially been released to the public (that is set for later this month), initial hands-on reviews from journalists have been pretty positive, with the innovative design getting praise.
And according to the latest rumours, it sounds as if both Apple and Google plan to copy that design in their coming flagship phones.
First, Apple: The Cupertino, California-based technology company is expected to unveil a 10th-anniversary edition of the iPhone this autumn. The “iPhone 8” is rumoured to be getting a major redesign — including a curved S8-style OLED screen.
And Google also is due to bring out the second version of its high-end Pixel phone later this year. The latest reports suggest that it too will come with a flexible OLED screen that’s curved.
(In both cases, the usual caveats apply: These are rumours, not confirmed features, and the companies almost never discuss coming products before they are formally announced.)
This is a remarkable turn of events. Samsung’s devices, while high-quality, typically hew closely to Apple’s style. In a 132-page document from 2010, Samsung detailed how it could make its phones better — by making them resemble the iPhone much more closely. Apple has waged war on Samsung in the courts for years.
But this time around, Samsung is leading the way — and Apple and Google are playing catch-up.
This article was originally published on Business Insider. Copyright 2017.
