LG's ambitious LG Rollable phone, unveiled in 2020, was a marvel of overengineering but ultimately doomed by cost and fragility. The device featured two motors on a geared track to expand its screen, a complex mechanism far beyond typical foldable designs. While impressive, this complexity made it prohibitively expensive to manufacture, likely requiring a premium price tag that consumers in 2021 weren't willing to pay for an LG device.

Durability concerns were paramount; the intricate system of motors, springy arms, and a looping screen presented numerous failure points, making long-term reliability highly questionable. LG's mobile division, already struggling, couldn't justify the massive investment required to scale production.