Foldable and bendable portable displays may be the future of smartphones. Graphene technology has reportedly been gaining interest among tech giants. In fact, Samsung announced previously that it has found a way to mass produce graphene. Whereas Samsung appears to be intent on gaining lead ahead of competition, graphene has also become an interest for competitors like Apple. Can Samsung and Apple pull off a graphene-based phone? Who will do it better?

Personal Finance Hub reported about Samsung's bid to create the next best smartphone using graphene. It is also Samsung's potential ticket to revolutionizing the smartphione market. According to Samsung Advanced Institute of Technology graphene offers electron mobility better than silicon. Specifically, it is 200 times better than silicon making it an excellent substitute. However, creating graphene transistors has become a challenge. Previous methods reduced the conducting ability of graphene when reproduced for commercial use. Samsung found a way to turn this around. According to the company:

"By re-engineering the basic operating principles of digital switches, Samsung Advanced Institute of Technology has developed a device that can switch off the current in graphene without degrading its mobility. The demonstrated graphene-silicon Schottky barrier can switch current on or off by controlling the height of the barrier. The new device was named Barristor, after its barrier-controllable feature."

According to Apple Insider's report, the most immediate application of graphene when produced successfully would be touch screens. CEO of Graphene Frontiers, Michael Patterson, told Fortune that graphene film or sheet offers "incredible potential for eletronics." However, it will take time. Samsung has a good head start among competitors but Apple may be well looking into the technology. Junghah Lee pointed Apple's inclusion of graphene in at least two of its patents already.

To highlight the value of graphene today to manufacturer, Bloomberg reported that graphene is crucial in the development of flexible screens for portable devices. The race to graphene application and production can lead to better tablets, smartphones and wearable devices in the future. Analysts believe it should be just a matter of time before the next handsets from Samsung and Apple feature the technology.