The Bezel Question

Daniel Yi
Daniel Yi
Aug 27, 2017 · 3 min read

Are bezels bad?

Phone design constantly evolves year after year; physical keyboards have become obsolete and phones seem to be getting thinner, slimmer, and taller. Flagships from LG and Samsung follow this trend by increasing their screen to body ratio while opting for a taller 2:1 screen aspect ratio. There’s no denying that these phones look great, especially the Galaxy S8, but is this the direction we want our phones to go?

The Sharp Aquos Crsytal

http://www.sharpusa.com/ForHome/Mobile/Models/AQUOSCRYSTAL-306SH.aspx

The Sharp Aquos Crystal was one of the first phones with almost no bezels on the top and sides, but it came with a few drawbacks. One concern is in the ear-piece, because it doesn’t have one. Okay so it does have an ear-piece, but not a traditional one, instead it vibrates the entire screen to produce the same sound. While a clever solution to the lack of physical space above the screen, it produced muddy unclear sound. Another drawback is in the front-facing camera, which was moved under the display. This is a known issue seen in laptops like the Dell XPS 13, where it’s placed in an awkward position. I also believe that the thin frame of bezel-less phones reduce the overall strength and ability for cases to be as effective.

S8 & G6

Samsung and LG took a more pragmatic approach to this “bezel-less” design trend. Instead of doing their best to remove every bezel imaginable, they stuck with the top and bottom while focusing on thinning out the sides. Out of the few approaches to take, I definitely think this was the way to go. The current problems with taking out the top bezel don’t have fitting solutions just yet, and for such important flagship phones, that’s a risk they weren’t willing to take.

Focusing on just the sides does answer many of the issues I had with the Sharp Aquos Crystal, but it still raises concern for accidental touches, especially in the S8. The S8’s curved edges bring your meaty thumbs that much closer to accidentally touching the screen. Even with software fixes to prevent accidental input, it’s not something I would rely on all the time.

So, should bezels stay?

I think bezels have a place in phone design. Your viewing experience might not be as immersive, but at least you can comfortably hold your phone without accidentally closing an app. When casemakers design for phones, the lip around the front usually covers the bezel without covering any screen, but with less and less bezels, simple cases will offer less protection. Coupled with the all glass builds phones are leaning towards today, slippery hands will cost you a lot of money.

Bezels in monitors and TV’s are a different story due to how we interact with them. We don’t deal with them as personally as we do our phones. Pushing the limits of display and hardware technology is an exciting area for innovation, but for now I’ll keep supporting function over form.

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