Mobile phones have become an essential ally in our daily lives. In just two decades, we have gone from carrying mobile phones with flips and keyboards in our pockets to today’s devices with large screens. The increase in the size of devices has been directly proportional to their functionalities, however, there is a general fear that perhaps was not so common before the arrival of smartphones: the risk of accidentally breaking the screen.
Despite the cases and protectors, the screens are continually exposed to bumps and falls that can scratch or partially break the screen of our mobile phone. These are generally expensive and complex breakdowns for which we are forced to turn to the home repair service or an independent professional, if applicable. But what would happen if users could repair these defects by ourselves and without effort? Experts point to this as one of the latest trends in the smartphone market.
Some manufacturers are betting on launching their own do-it-yourself repair kits, in order to optimize the useful life of their models for as long as possible. One of the most advanced in this field is the Korean Samsung, which launched its self-repair program in the United States and a dozen European countries in 2022. To do this, it has collaborated with the iFixit online store, which supplies the tools, parts and manuals necessary to replace the screen, battery or speakers ourselves.
At the same time, Samsung is one of the manufacturers that brings the most novelties each year to the mobile sector congresses, such as its models with a folding screen at the time. The Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 5 and Z Fold 5 will be the next to join this service, which already has the Galaxy S or Galaxy Book Pro series kits, for prices ranging between 20 and 150 euros.
The mass production of self-repairing screens may represent one of the greatest advances in R&D in the field of mobile phones. According to statements by the company CSS Insight for CNBC, the first models could be marketed from 2028. This technology consists of the incorporation of a “nano-coating” on the surface of the screen, which reacts to the air against small scratches and cracks, and is capable of filling them perfectly.
In 2020, researchers at the Korea Institute of Science and Technology (KIST) already developed a material capable of self-repairing small cracks in the mobile screen using colorless polyimide (CPI) and linseed oil. This mixture manages to recover the physical properties of damaged polymeric materials in electronic devices, which accelerates the repair process by reacting with humidity and UV rays, and works at room temperature.
