Flexible OLED displays are becoming more commonplace everyday. They just need to make it into some of the devices we can buy. However long it may take, when that day arrives, Universal Display Corporation thinks something like the gadget above will be a part of it.

It’s a wearable, flexible, 4-inch prototype screen that CES attendees will be able to drool over, maybe even wipe clean and try on. Just don’t expect to wear it comfortably. It won’t be in stores anytime soon either. This one was developed with military applications in mind, but bendy consumer devices are on the way at some point. Give it a few years and we will start seeing them in passports, clothing, packaging etc.

This isn’t your typical external HD design, by any means. With this USB HD concept from Green Banana you won’t just be storing your info mindlessly. You will have something cool to occupy your eyes. The drive has an OLED screen, the design on the screen changes depending on the contents of the drive. Each file is represented on screen by a shape that is proportional to the filesize.

As you add more files, the shapes diversify. It doesn’t just look pretty, it can help you manage your drive better, allowing you to see how much space is left on your drive easily, and how it is being used. Think of it as art created from your data. For the moment, it remains but a concept, but if you like the idea, you can download a free copy of the software that the display is based on.

When organic light-emitting diode (OLED) televisions were first put on display people were immediately grabbed by the stunning resolution and bright color capabilities possible. Place an OLED TV beside a plasma or LED TV and the difference is immediate. That is also true if you place the price tag of the OLED beside the plasma/LED. Because OLED technology is still new the price range for these kinds of TVs are astronomical. The first commercial OLED TV is Sony’s XEL-1 and its 11-inch display will set you back about $1,800 if you can find one (they are only available in Japan right now.)

Today the chairman of Sony said that the company will begin to sell OLED televisions in America starting next year. “When you look at OLED, your impulse is to say ‘wow’. We need that reaction from people at Sony … it’s a statement of confidence, that there is a path to somewhere else,” said Howard Stringer at a Sony vision seminar held in Tokyo.

This photo was snapped at the FPD International 2007 convention happening in Yokohama, Japan this week. It’s of the world’s first bendable OLED screen designed and developed by Samsung. Comprising of a 4.3-inch display with a contrast ratio of 1000:1, resolution of 480 x 272 pixels and brightness factor of 200 cd/m2, it’s attracting some attention at the event for its clarity, color resolution and the simple fact that it’s curved.

Samsung reps are all smiles but when they were asked when the public could expect to buy one of their curved OLED screens they just kept grinning and offered no comment. In short the Samsung screen sure looks neat but don’t expect to be able to buy one for at least a year, possibly two.

It looks like Sony has come through on those OLED TV’s they’ve been touting since as far back as January. Today the company has finally unveiled information on the release of these super-slim televisions boasting 1,000,000:1 contrast.

That 3mm truly makes this new OLED from Sony the thinnest TV/monitor thing going (and probably the most fragile). Sony says the XEL-1 OLED TV with an 11-inch display will be available in Japan on December 1 going for about $1700. The new XEL-1 will have a built-in tuner, 960 x 450 resolution, HDMI input as well as USB and ethernet, two 1W built-in speakers and measures 287 × 140 × 253mm.

This past January we reported about Sony’s ultra-thin OLED (orangic light emitting diode) televisions that were on display at the CES. These beauties produce a far greater range of colors and contrast ratio (try 1,000,000:1) making them absolutely amazing to look at – and they range in thickness from just 3mm to 9mm.

At the CES Sony wasn’t saying one word about cost or when the public would be able to purchase these in stores, leading to speculation that the OLED technology would remain out-of-reach and in the prototype stage until Sony could crack a way to mass manufacturer them.

Now it appears that Sony has solved that problem because the Japanese electronics titan has announced that it will begin selling OLED TVs before the end of 2007. But here’s the rub: Sony hasn’t revealed what size their first OLED units will be or …