Researchers in Canada say they've developed a paper-thin computer so flexible it can be rolled up and carried in a pocket.

Computer scientists at Queens University in Ontario say their prototype computer utilizes a flexible, touch-screen display that is completely bendable, the Los Angeles Times reported Thursday.

A university release describing the device interchangeably used the terms "computer" and "smartphone," the newspaper said.

"This computer looks, feels and operates like a small sheet of interactive paper," said creator Roel Vertegaal, director of the Human Media Lab at Queens. "You interact with it by bending it into a cellphone, flipping the corner to turn pages or writing on it with a pen."

The device is a "smartphone prototype, called paperphone" that is "best described as a flexible iPhone," he said.

The technology could be used in tablets, phones and other devices that will "shape with your pocket," the researchers said.