Samsung Patent Shows A Stylus That's Also The Smartphone Speaker

Samsung apparently isn't done innovating with the stylus. Or at least isn't done having crazy ideas about them. A patent filed in March this year reveals its idea of a stylus that doubles as a smartphone speaker. But before you think it's something as odd as ASUS' Stylus Headset, it is both less and at the same time even more insane. In Samsung's patent, the stylus is the smartphone speaker, though through some technological marvel, the smartphone would continue to output sound even without the speaker stylus inside.

The patent isn't merely about an S Pen itself but a complete system that includes an "accommodation space", a.k.a. the S Pen silo, a "speaker module", and an accessory that goes into the accommodation space, in other words, the S Pen. The basic functionality involves the accessory, the stylus in this case, transmitting sound from the speaker module inside the smartphone to its own speaker at the end of the stylus facing outwards.

But what if the stylus isn't inside the silo, as is the case when you're actually using it as a stylus? According to the patent, the accommodation space itself will be able to transmit the audio coming from the speaker module.

What would the difference be, then? While the patent isn't exactly clear on that, one could guess that the "stylus speaker" would afford better audio output than one that is simply channeled through a small tunnel, which could produce side effects in transit.

As puzzling as the idea, not to mention the implementation, of this patent may be, Patently Mobile theorizes one key benefit of the feature: increasing the water proof qualities of a device be removing the conventional grilles at the bottom. Of course, being a patent, and a new one at that, there is no assurance when, or even if, we'll see this on a real, let alone commercial, device.

VIA: Patently Mobile