Looking back a few years it’s hard to believe how far mobile phone tech has come in a limited time. This rapid advancement gave rise to the public perception that mobile devices would soon become the stuff of science fiction. But, as we all know, the science fiction mobile tech has not yet come to pass.

If anything, the mobile industry seems to have been rather stagnant for a while.But that doesn’t mean that a few impressive leaps are not due in the near future. From holographic displays to flexible bodies, these are some of the designs that are slated for release at some point in the future.

Holographic Displays

Yes, we all want some holographic displays in our lives. Iron Man nailed the tech, after all, so how hard can it really be? We’ve gone from downloading apps to playing in browser in a short space of time, so anything is possible.

The concept of floating holographic has been around for years, and even as far back as the iPhone 6 there were rumours that the technology would finally be making an appearance. Holographic displays have remained elusive, however, and aren’t even rumoured to be in any near future models.

But there are already some highly impressive demonstration videos floating around, indicating that designers are at least considering it, even if it isn’t exactly like it is in the movies.Even the games demonstrated in the videos look rather interesting. But if you can’t wait for holographic displays, you can settle for normal games and play now, in the present.

Flexile Phones

The idea of a flexible phone is pretty neat, and apparently not that hard to achieve technologically speaking. Way back in 2008 Nokia showcased the Morph, which was a rather impressively flexible device. It could apparently wrap around a wrist, or even adjust to hang from a belt. The Morph never came to fruition, however, perhaps because the showcase didn’t set the world on fire like the company was hoping.

Not long ago Samsung even released the Galaxy Round, but sales were poor due to the model not really having much practical use other than being flexible. Either way, there is much potential in a flexible phone, and better models are almost certain in future releases.

Solar Powered Devices

As far back as 2016 solar powered mobile devices were already being showcased. At the Mobile World Congress trade show a company named Kyocera had a working prototype; a phone able to run entirely from direct sunlight.

However, given the limitations of solar energy as it stands, the device wasn’t exactly a smash hit. Although the phone could indeed work via sunlight, the trade-off was less than appealing. It was stated that for around 3 minutes of direct sunlight the device could manage a 1 minute phone call. So, most will still probably prefer awall socket.

Regardless, Kyocera explained that the solar option would work great for emergency situations, allowing campers or skiers the chance to call for help if needed. A great idea, and not a bad feature for future designs.