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CES 2013: Samsung and LG to Debut Flexible Smartphone Screens?

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December 18, 2012

Will the flexible smartphone screen change the face of mobile phone design in 2013 and mark the biggest change since the introduction of the touchscreen? Rumors suggest manufacturing rivals Samsung and LG are working on it. Speculation regarding flexible display development dates back to 2002, and in the last six years we’ve seen some interesting prototypes and low volume products at CES featuring E-ink and Electronic Paper Display technologies. To address slow response times (especially with video) and challenges with handling color, flexible OLED displays emerged. Continue reading CES 2013: Samsung and LG to Debut Flexible Smartphone Screens?

Affordable AMOLED TVs Expected to be Mass Produced by 2014

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November 18, 2011
  • The promise of super-thin and colorful OLED (Organic Light Emitting Diode) technology for TVs has yet to be realized, even though the industry has been regularly impressed with prototypes and limited editions.
  • According to Electronic House, “OLED TVs are poised to make a comeback, or a debut, or a comeback debut.” Researchers predict that AMOLED (Active Matrix OLED) will appear in a number of devices, including TVs.
  • LG, for example, is planning a 55-inch OLED TV in 2012, and one of the larger Asian manufacturers has a deal with DuPont to use the company’s “printing-based process that it says will reduce manufacturing costs for large-display AMOLED TVs.”
  • “Current manufacturing technology doesn’t scale up to TVs,” says Bill Feehery, global business director for DuPont Electronics & Communications. “Today OLED material is heated up and evaporated, then they use a screen to create the pixels on the display. Our goal was to use an ink-jet printer-like technology to print it.”
  • Feehery suggests the hefty premiums of early units will come down in cost once mass manufacturing of AMOLED TVs begins in 2014.
  • “AMOLED is already used in mobile phones and can deliver vivid colors, higher contrast, faster response and a wider viewing angle than traditional LCDs, while consuming less power,” reports Electronic House.

Epson Moverio: First See-Through 3D Head-Mounted Display

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November 11, 2011
  • Epson Japan announced the Moverio this week, a see-through 3D head-mounted display that the company claims is the first of its kind.
  • “Think of it as a mix of NEC’s transparent HMD Tele Scouter and Sony’s cool 3D OLED head mounted display HMZ-T1, powered by Android OS,” reports TechCrunch.
  • Epson’s Moverio is lower resolution than the Sony HMD, but at 160g is much lighter in weight.
  • “The Moverio supports MPEG-4/MPEG-4 AVC/H.264 video files, including side-by-side 3D images on its 0.52-inch displays with 960×540 resolution,” indicates the post. “It handles AAC and MP3 audio files, too.”
  • The HMD is expected to hit Japanese stores later this month at a price equivalent to $770.

Hands-On Reviews: Striking New Sony DSLRs and Mirrorless Digicams

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September 27, 2011
  • Digital Trends takes four of Sony’s new digicams for a test drive — a pair of 24-megapixel DSLRs (the SLT-A77 and SLT-A65) and two compact mirrorless cameras (the NEX-5N and NEX-7).
  • The 3-day test period was conducted by recording more than 1,200 stills and dozens of short videos in rugged Southern California exteriors.
  • The review speaks highly of the DSLRs: “Sony really leaped ahead with this new pair by upping still resolution, the frame rate, video quality and incorporating a high-quality OLED viewfinder. Resolution is now 24.3 megapixels, the most of any consumer camera. Even with all the pixels, the A77 cranks off 12 frames per second at full resolution; the less expensive A65 does 10. Both also capture AVCHD Progressive movies, which are a beautiful 1080p resolution at 60 frames per second, rather than 1080i.”
  • In terms of cost: “The A77 costs $1,399 for the body only and is sold with an extremely sharp constant-aperture f/2.8 16-50mm lens for around $2,000. The A65 costs $999 with a more traditional 18-55mm lens. As a comparison, the 3.7 fps 18-megapixel Canon EOS Rebel T3i is $899 with an 18-55mm lens.”
  • Regarding the mirrorless cameras, Digital Trends comments: “Although the NEX-7 still requires a final production sample test, the early taste was quite fine. This could easily be the camera of the year given our hands-on experience. The buzz among the reviewers was pretty intense. As for the NEX-5N, although it’s a nice camera, it really paled in comparison to its big brothers and sisters.”
  • Pricing for the mirrorless models: “The NEX-7 has the high-quality finder built-in on the rear top left; the view is very good. We used the camera with an f/2.0 24mm prime lens, which added a cool $1,200 to the basic $1,149 price for the body. The NEX-7 will be sold with a cosmetically-matching black 18-55mm lens for $1,349. This outfit has a very Leica-like vibe and takes some pretty spectacular images… The NEX-5N has a 16-megapixel APS-C sensor (up from 14) and costs $699 with an 18-55mm kit lens.”

Stretchable OLED: Roll Up your Tablet PC and Tuck it in Your Pocket

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September 2, 2011
  • Engineers at UCLA have created the first fully stretchable organic light-emitting diode (OLED), taking the development of bendable devices to the next level.
  • “Stretchable electronics promise video displays that could be rolled up and tucked into a shirt pocket, or cell phones that could swell or shrink,” reports MIT’s Technology Review. “Electronic sheets that could be draped like cloth would be a boon for robotic skin and embedded medical devices.”
  • In order to create the stretchable OLED display, UCLA’s team “sandwiched two layers of the carbon nanotube electrode around a plastic that emits light when a current runs through it. The team used an office laminating device to press the final, layered device together tightly, pushing out any air bubbles and ensuring that the circuit would be complete when electricity was applied.” The result is a small polymer that can stretch up to 45 percent on one axis while emitting a colored light.
  • The two-centimeter square proof-of-concept unit is a ways off from making it into CE devices, but is a significant breakthrough. “We are still some ways off from having high-performance, really robust, intrinsically stretchable devices,” says Stanford professor of chemical engineering Zhenan Bao who works on stretchable solar cells, but “with this work and those from others, we are getting closer and closer to realizing this kind of sophisticated and multifunctional electronic skin.”

Sony Announces First Head-Mounted 3D OLED Display

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September 1, 2011
  • Sony announced it will launch a head mounted display dubbed the “Personal 3D Viewer” HMZ-T1 in Japan this November (some of you may have seen the prototype at CES 2011).
  • The wearable display is designed for viewing both 2D and 3D on a “movie theater-like virtual screen,” equivalent to a 750-inch display, according to Sony.
  • The device uses twin 0.7-inch OLED panels with 1280×720 resolution and 5.1 surround sound. It is expected to sell in Japan for around $700 (possibly higher when it makes its way to the U.S.).
  • ETCentric staffer Phil Lelyveld comments: “Online chatter discusses this as an alternative to 3DTVs versus the social aspect of viewing. The health warning at the bottom of the press release is rather strange, given the target market.”
  • Health warning from the Sony press release: “Considering the protection of the growth and development, we ask children (age 15 and younger) to refrain from using this product.”

Sony NEX-VG20: Focus on Sensor, Sound, Interchangeable Lenses

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August 29, 2011
  • Sony has unveiled its much anticipated NEX-VG20 camcorder, the next-gen version of its popular VG10. The company explains that four key value propositions were considered when developing the VG20: the sensor, sound, lenses and design.
  • Notable features include: interchangeable lens capability, new Exmor APS HD CMOS sensor and BIONZ processor, recording in 1080p (1920×1080), 16 megapixel sensor, ability to save images in JPEG and RAW formats, and recording at frame rates of 24p or 60p.
  • “What really sounds like it’s been improved is the VG20’s audio recording capabilities,” reports Digital Trends. “It includes a Quad Capsule Spatial Array Mic that supports stereo and 5.1 channel surround sound and has a new audio level control.”
  • In its Hands-On Impressions section, Digital Camera Review praised the “comfortable design and smart ergonomics” of the VG20, although expressed some issue with the camera’s heft. The review spoke highly of the LCD screen’s TruBlack technology and ability to rotate 270 degrees, but had issues with the viewfinder: “I appreciated the fact that it displayed plenty of helpful information including resolution, video format, battery life, remaining memory, etc., and I thought that the picture looked pretty crisp. But after having spent some time with the outstanding OLED viewfinders on the Alpha cameras (and enjoyed how closely it projected the image to the eye, so there was little to no border) I felt like I was looking down an extremely long hallway when using the viewfinder on the VG20.”
  • The NEX-VG20 is scheduled for a November release. Price: $1,599 (or $2,199 with the lens mount kit).

Sony Experiments with Headgear for VR Gaming

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July 21, 2011
  • Sony Computer Entertainment may launch a 3D headset for virtual reality-type games in the future.
  • The head-mounted display was first introduced during the company’s CES press event in January, but now Sony is reportedly working on developing it for more than just viewing passive entertainment.
  • The device features twin 720p OLED displays (one for each eye) and 5.1 surround sound.
  • Mick Hocking, group studio manager for Sony Europe, said the 3D headset can provide an immersive experience for games (and it is worth mentioning that a number of Sony Computer Entertainment studios fall under his command).
  • “The head-mounted display has twin-OLED screens; very high quality. At the moment it’s just a head-mounted display; the head isn’t being tracked — but that’s something we’re doing R&D on,” Hocking explained. “We’re working with a couple of games at Sony that are experimenting with virtual-reality-type experiences.”

Sony Computer Entertainment Discusses Long Term 3D Strategy

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July 20, 2011
  • Sony’s Mick Hocking talks about what they’ve learned about 3D in the last year at Sony Computer Entertainment. Hocking has been responsible for spearheading the 3D games enterprise.
  • The main lesson involves the need to educate developers in how to produce quality 3D. “We’ve actually now got a guide with 10 points for producing technically correct 3D, it’s our 3D 10 Commandments if you like, and we also have lots of resources now to help developers creatively with 3D as well.”
  • Last year 3D had a “wow factor.” This year there are many 3D capable devices becoming available.
  • Sony has 50 million 3D-enabled PlayStation 3 units and over 50 3D games in the market. In addition, there are 3D Blu-ray, 3D MP4s and 3D Camcorders and 3D HDTVs. Sony may look to build 3D on a handheld. Virtual reality may come back with Sony’s head-mounted, twin-OLED 3D display.
  • Despite what critics are describing as waning interest from consumers, Hocking emphasized that 3D remains a long term strategy for Sony.

Sony Announces Professional OLED Monitors

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March 6, 2011

Sony announced it will soon offer a professional monitor aimed at TV and film production industries that contains the largest commercial organic light-emitting diode (OLED) screen yet produced. OLED is a flat-panel technology that rivals liquid-crystal display (LCD), with pixels that contain an organic material that emits its own light when energized, so screens can be made thinner and more efficient. OLED also displays brighter and richer images than LCD panels.

Despite recent tech advances, manufacturers have had a difficult time getting OLED production to the point where it can create reliable larger screens. Smaller screens designed for cell phones and portable devices have not been an issue, but larger screens have remained problematic. Despite earlier prototypes and announced plans from the likes of Sony, Samsung and LG, we have yet to see OLED TVs larger than 11-inches on the consumer market.

Sony is positioning the new Trimaster EL professional OLED monitors for use in editing bays, satellite trucks, and broadcasting control rooms. Expect to see the 25-inch screen ($28,840) by May 1 and a 17-inch model by July 1.

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