The display notch on smartphones caught on so quickly that the industry practically transformed overnight, with punch holes soon replacing said notches on more expensive models. But that wasn’t radical enough for Samsung and Apple, as the two are working on ushering in an entirely new era of smartphones within the next couple of years.The iPhone 20 Pro will be very different
Reports have previously come out about a special iPhone Pro model for the 20th anniversary of the iPhone in 2027. This phone — likely named the iPhone 20 Pro — is said to feature a completely bezel-free display with no cutouts for notches or punch holes (or Dynamic Island, if you will) either.
However, for such a phone to exist, Apple needs help from Samsung.Apple waiting on Samsung Display
According to a new report (translated source), Apple is waiting on Samsung to perfect such a display before it can adopt it for its flagship smartphones. Though there is a chance that this might not happen by next year as was planned, the report alleges that once it does, it will completely change the smartphone industry overnight yet again.
Say goodbye to physical buttons

RedMagic 10 Pro

Imagine the RedMagic 10 Pro but even sleeker. | Image by RedMagic

Once such a display is made, the report claims that Apple and Samsung will likely opt for smartphones that feature no physical buttons at all. Instead, touch controls via gestures on the sides of the screens of these phones will be used for changing the volume level or putting the phone to sleep amid other actions.

Chinese manufacturers, according to previous leaks, are also exploring manufacturing such a display. Save for budget smartphones, almost every phone series across the industry is expected to adopt the button-free design once it has debuted with an iPhone or a Galaxy phone.

I’m looking forward to this
Such smartphones will most likely be very contentious, just as the absence of physical buttons and knobs in cars is disliked by many drivers. I, personally, am really looking forward to such a phone because of two reasons.First, such a phone would feel pretty futuristic, and I’m all for that. But secondly, and much more importantly, we will finally see a resurgence of smartphones with perfect displays and no cutouts.

I have always severely disliked the trend of notches and punch holes and I cannot wait for Samsung and Apple to usher in an era where we are rid of those once and for all.

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