The Notch Display Revolution in Smartphones

The notch display revolution in smartphones has been a game-changer for mobile technology. It all started with the release of the iPhone X in 2017, which introduced the world to the notch display.

The notch display was designed to house the phone's front-facing camera and sensors, allowing for a more immersive viewing experience. The iPhone X's notch was a bold move by Apple, and it sparked a trend in the industry.

The notch display has become a staple in modern smartphones, with many manufacturers incorporating it into their designs. The Samsung Galaxy S9, for example, featured a smaller notch compared to the iPhone X.

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A Notch Display is a type of screen design that features a distinctive cut-out or notch at the top or bottom of the screen.

This design allows for a more immersive viewing experience and a thinner phone body.

The notch is usually used to house the phone's front camera, sensors, and speaker.

This design was first popularized by the iPhone X in 2017.

Notch displays have since become a standard feature in many smartphones.

The first smartphone with a notch was actually an Android phone, not an iPhone. The Sharp Aquos S2 and the Essential Phone PH-1, released in August 2017, had a U-shaped cutout at the top to house the front camera, which was the first iteration of the cutout and simply called a "notch".

These phones had a striking appearance and inspired other manufacturers to ditch the thick bezels at the top and bottom of the screen, increasing the screen-to-body ratio to an impressive 85%. The notch also allowed for an all-screen smartphone without interruptions, a huge deal at the time.

The Essential Phone PH-1 and the Sharp Aquos S2 were the first to feature a notch, but it wasn't until Apple put its own spin on it with the iPhone X that the notch became mainstream. The iPhone X was a surprise for everyone, and its radical design featured a screen that ran from the top edge of the chassis to the bottom edge.

The iPhone X's screen-to-body ratio improved to 82.9%, but the notch's size was a big distraction for some users. The iPhone X managed to create a buzz in the market, and the notch stayed around for a while, becoming a staple on future iPhones.

The wedge notch is the most well-known type of notched display, found in Apple devices like the iPhone X and subsequent models.

This type of notch was the first to break into the popular consciousness, and it's still widely recognized today.

The wedge notch can also be found in Android devices like LG's G7 ThinQ and Huawei's P20 Pro.

The hole-punched display, also known as the circular cutout display or hole-display, is a newer type of notched display that's gained popularity since 2019.

This type of notch migrates the teardrop notch to the left or right of the display, and it presents new challenges for software developers.

The desire for smaller devices with bigger screens is what led to the development of notched displays, and this trend is likely to continue.

Google has patented a technology that could potentially replace notches, but it's hard to say when we'll see it in a Google handset.

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Notches on modern smartphones allow for a higher screen-to-body ratio, smaller physical form-factor, and more screen space by migrating the Android status bar into the screen space surrounding the notch.

The introduction of notches was a design choice that enabled manufacturers to create new smartphone designs, such as the Infinity Display found in Samsung's Galaxy S8 and Apple's iPhone XR's Liquid Retina Display.

Notches combined with thin bezels and curved displays allow for an all-screen ideal, a significant advantage over the competition. However, the actual real-world benefits of smartphone notches are slim, and a phone with a notch doesn't feel terribly better or different to one without a display cutout.

The first smartphone with a notch was the Sharp Aquos S2 and the Essential Phone PH-1, released in August 2017, which featured a U-shaped cutout at the top to house the front camera.

Notches have become a standard feature in smartphones, with many manufacturers implementing them to increase the screen-to-body ratio and reduce the physical form-factor of their devices.

The implementation of Google's guidelines for Android developers in 2018 has reduced some of the growing pains around notched displays, but not eliminated them outright.

The Essential Phone was one of the first phones to incorporate the notch, with a tiny tab carved out for its front-facing camera.

The Sharp Aquos S2 and the Essential Phone PH-1 were the first phones to feature a U-shaped cutout at the top to house the front camera, which was simply called a "notch" instead of a teardrop-style or a hole-punch notch.

The Pixel 3 XL had the thickest notch we've seen, but a deeper notch allowed for more room on either side for notification icons.

Google couldn't justify the notch on the Pixel 3 XL and had to remove it in favor of a thin forehead, like the Samsung Galaxy S9 or Note 9 series.

The OnePlus 6T featured a teardrop notch, while Apple retained its classic Face ID notch on the iPhone XS, iPhone XS Max, and the iPhone XR.

A prototype for a 5G Samsung smartphone appeared featuring a notch on the upper-right corner of the screen, which was later implemented on the internal display of their first Galaxy Fold device.

Discover more: Samsung Galaxy S25 Series Reportedly Removes Display Graininess.

The notch display trend took the smartphone world by storm, and several phones jumped on the bandwagon. The Essential Phone was one of the first notable devices to incorporate a notched display, announced in May 2017 and released in August 2017.

The Sharp Aquos S2 and the Essential Phone PH-1, released in August 2017, had a U-shaped cutout at the top to house the front camera, giving them a striking appearance. This design choice immediately separated them from the crowd of small-screen smartphones.

The OnePlus 6 was the first OnePlus phone to have a notch, launched in 2018, which enabled the company to move the phone's display and notification bar further, giving the phone a 90 percent screen-to-body ratio. The notch design gave the phone a sleek appearance and more screen space.

The LG G7 phone, announced in May, had a notch, exactly like its rumors predicted, but users could black out the bars on each side of the notch or choose a psychedelic rainbow pattern. This flexibility allowed users to customize their phone's look to their liking.

The Google Pixel 3 XL, launched in 2018, had a notch on its display, which was undoubtedly the thickest notch seen at the time, but a deeper notch allowed for more room on either side for notification icons. Users could also hide the notch by blackening the sides around it.

The Vivo Nex introduced a selfie camera that extended out of the device and retracted back when users closed the camera app, while the Oppo Find X placed all the rear and front cameras in a mechanical module that rose out of the top edge every time users accessed the camera. These innovative designs showcased the creativity of phone manufacturers in addressing the notch trend.

The Samsung Galaxy Fold was the first device to feature a "Side-Notch" on its internal display.

Samsung took a bold step by introducing the world's first Side-Notch on the Galaxy Fold, despite the backlash from notch-haters online.

A fresh viewpoint: Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra Display

The Side-Notch was a distinct departure from the teardrop notch design that was popular at the time.

OnePlus also experimented with a pop-up selfie camera module on the OnePlus 7T Pro, but it had durability concerns and increased manufacturing costs.

In contrast, Samsung's Side-Notch on the Galaxy Fold was a deliberate design choice to provide a unique user experience.

The Galaxy Fold's internal display was the first to feature a Side-Notch, making it a pioneering device in the notch display category.

The notch display trend is still going strong, but it's likely to change soon. Apple's iPhone X popularized the notch design in 2017, and since then, many other Androids have followed suit.

The Essential Phone was actually the first phone to sport a notch design, debuting in May 2017. Android Pie OS supports onscreen notches, which means more devices will likely join the trend.

Under-display camera modules are a technology that could replace most smartphone notches over time. These modules allow manufacturers to squeeze the front-facing camera underneath the screen itself.

Early iterations of under-display cameras might come with caveats when it comes to quality, but it's a promising technology that's naturally going to replace notches.

The notch display trend started with two Android phones, the Sharp Aquos S2 and the Essential Phone PH-1, which released in August 2017 and featured a U-shaped cutout at the top to house the front camera.

These phones were the first to popularize the notch design, which gave them a striking appearance and separated them from the crowd of small-screen smartphones. They achieved an all-screen smartphone without any interruptions, increasing the screen-to-body ratio to an impressive 85%.

Before Apple's iPhone X, the notch was simply called a "notch" instead of a teardrop-style or a hole-punch notch. This design change marked a significant shift from the thick bezels at the top and bottom of the screen, which were common in smartphones at the time.

The notch trend inspired other manufacturers to follow suit, and soon many phones were adopting the design. The Essential Phone PH-1 and the Sharp Aquos S2 were among the first to bid farewell to the thick bezels, paving the way for future smartphone designs.