LG trots out 5.3-inch display with almost no bezel

The HD display will likely find a home in future flagship models, such as next year's G3 successor.

LG's latest creation, the 5.3-inch Neo Edge display. LG

The face of next year's LG flagship smartphone could incorporate a bezel so slim it's barely there at all. The hardware-maker is showing off its latest creation, a 1080p HD 5.3-inch display with a .7mm (0.027-inch) border. Yes, the same thickness of a stick of lead from a mechanical pencil.

Citing a breakthrough they term Neo Edge technology, LG's new panel employs an adhesive layer that doesn't require a plastic frame around the edge. As icing on the cake, the display is also water-resistant and dust-proof.

It's not clear as to how soon we'll see one of the fancy new screens in a device, but I suspect the G3 successor would be among the first.

To be clear, LG is not the first to create an ultrathin bezel for its smartphone screens. The Sharp Aquos Crystal, already on the market, features a 5-inch 720p display with a supserslim screen design. LG's new hotness, though, is both larger and boasts a higher resolution than Sharp's. LG also claims its display is the "world's thinnest" -- for now.

Whereas the last few years saw smartphones getting larger, the next generation of nearly bezel-free phone designs could shrink the overall footprint of even large-screen phones, by trimming the material around the edges. With CES only a few months away, we could soon see similar announcements from other hardware makers as well.