iPhone 360: Apple patents wrap-around screen that takes over entire handset

The back casing of your iPhone could soon be a thing of the past.

Apple has been awarded a patent for a 360-degree screen that extends on all sides of the phone - transforming the wasted space into a second screen.

The tech giant has said this would allow users to play games or watch videos on either side and display photos in a continuous loop around their iPhone, which mimics a 3D experience, reports the Daily Mail.

The new patent, called 'Electronic device with wrap around display', was filed in April 2015 and describes a transparent housing and a flexible display assembly enclosed within the transparent housing.

In order to produce this innovation, Apple includes its approach of a flexible display that is capable of folding into a 'tightly wound configuration' that would be placed within the transparent casing.

“In other cases, however, the entire enclosure can be fully transparent in which case the folded flexible display can unwind when placed within the glass enclosure,” reads the application published.

“Once fully unwound, the flexible display can present images at any portion of the glass enclosure.”

This enclosure would be molded out of glass or plastic and a bendable display would be inserted to present images on the glass, so it would have the two screens.

“In this way, an illusion of depth perception can be presented mimicking a 3D experience,” the patent explained.

But the material used depends on other factors including recyclability, tooling and manufacturing costs, toxicity, among others.