The U.S. Patent and Trademark office has just published a patent application called "electronic device with wraparound display." Apple is the company behind the patent. This patent features a curved electronic device (likely a phone) that's made completely from glass and features a wraparound display.

The patent photos also do away with physical buttons. This patent may provide some clue as to what the next iPhone might look like. If the patent does pertain to the iPhone, there's no doubt that Apple will, once again, be ahead of the competition with this new technology.

Curved, Not Flat

Apple envisions a phone that's slightly curved, made of glass, and can be touched from all angles. A phone where no surface is left untouched, and no physical buttons actually exist. The company is getting rid of the flat phone altogether, so that a newer, better, phone can exist.

The new patent photos conjure up a lot of questions. The first one being: won't an all-glass phone be super fragile? There's no word from Apple yet, but I'm going to go out on a limb and assume that the glass this phone will be made from is super tough. Otherwise, the concept of an all-glass phone that shatters quickly would be silly.

Another question might be: will users be able to touch the phone from all sides? This seems to be the idea. So, you could likely swipe to lock and unlock the phone; swipe to go to your homepage; and pack your phone with tons of apps that cover the entire surface of the actual phone. Imagine how much space you would have if you got rid of the top, bottom, and side bars.

When Is This Phone Coming?

Patents are tricky things. First, the patent has to be approved. In order for that to happen, the Patent Office has to make sure that no other company is creating (or has created) the same technology. Now, Samsung fans, I know what you are thinking: "but, Samsung has this technology already!" The difference here is in the subtleties.

A patent has to be just unique enough to be considered original. If Apple has some spin on the flexi-glass that Samsung does not, that patent will be approved. It's also likely that Apple is moving in a different direction while using similar technology -- it's called piggy-backing, and every company on the planet does it. More importantly, though, when will Apple's new phone surface?

Caught Between Contracts

If you are like me, you might be wondering when the new iPhone will arrive. In the meantime, you might be waiting for the new phone and sitting on an ending contract. Not sure whether you should wait or look for a new phone? If the patents are approved and Apple moves ahead with this plan, the new iPhone could be mind-blowing.

But, it could also be years before this new phone arrives. My advice? Sit tight until Apple makes an announcement. Seemingly, Apple will be creating some version (it might not be this one) of a new iPhone in the near future.