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chanj
The display size may not matter as much as long as the resolution is high ...
elPresidente
If you are in a humid indoor environment all day, say like a plant biologist in ...
Qualcomm's display stays small, for now
Peter Clarke
9/17/2010 5:42 AM EDT
LONDON – Qualcomm is focused on 5.7-inch diagonal and smaller applications for its Mirasol display right now, even though there is no technical reason why the technology could not address larger applications, according to Cheryl Goodman, director of marketing for Qualcomm MEMS Technologies.
On key stopping off point in display scaling has become the 9.7-inch size popularized by Apple with its iPad tablet computer, Goodman acknowledged.
"Qualcomm is super-connected to what's happening in the mobile device where Mirasol can offset the problem of power consumption," said Goodman. "First out will be a 5.7-inch e-reader." Goodman said that rather than scaling to a larger sized display Qualcomm was likely to add smaller sizes tuned to the needs of the smartphone. The 5.7-inch display has a resolution of 1,024 by 768 pixels at 220 pixels per inch.
The Mirasol technology, which Qualcomm (San Diego, Calif.) acquired in 2004, can save power as it is non-volatile, does not require a back-light and is reflective, making use of ambient light. However, by the same token the display could be seen as less intense and visually appealing than a saturated emmissive display, such as OLED (see Comment: Qualcomm's MEMS display is smart but is it bright enough?)
Mirasol is based on a MEMS structure combined with thin film optics to create interferometric modulation. The color display is thin and bi-stable so that power is only consumed when changing the status of display. This has the disadvantage that grey-scale requires the application of spatial and temporal dithering. Nonetheless the display is capable of running video at 30-frame per second.
"It is difficult, challenging stuff," said Goodman, adding "There's no fundamental reason why the technology could not go larger [than 5.7-inch diagonal]."
Goodman acknowledged that Apple's launch of the iPad had created a consumer appetite and expectation around the 9.7-inch display size. "We would be remiss if we didn't investigate that."
Qualcomm has a dedicated Mirasol 4.5-generation display fab in Taiwan set to deliver in volume in 4Q10 so Mirasol displays are expected to turn up in products in 1H11. A year previously the e-reader design win was expected to deploy in fall 2010.
Goodman declined to comment on reports that Qualcomm is looking to spend as much as $2-billion to build a follow-on display fab.
Related links and articles:
Qualcomm's MEMS display gains e-reader design win
Qualcomm locates augmented reality R&D in Vienna
Qualcomm delays dual-core Snapdragon for smart books
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pixies
9/17/2010 10:17 AM EDT
How did Amazon missed this technology? Kindle will beat iPad hands down if it is in color.
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LarryM99
9/17/2010 12:12 PM EDT
Display size is becoming the single biggest design driver for portable electronics. Whatever happened to virtual display devices like integrated projectors or glasses-mounted displays? That area has been quiet lately.
Larry M.
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Dave.Dykstra
9/17/2010 12:21 PM EDT
How big do you go and still consider it portable? I don't seem to see a lot of people lugging around 17 inch display laptops - those must be being used as alternates to desktops. When we start to reach the point at which people don't want to carry it around but want a larger display, we should start to see the virtual displays coming out again. In the meantime, it looks like the industry is attempting to define the "sweet spot" in actual displays, whether on a phone, laptop, ereader or tablet.
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selinz
9/17/2010 1:09 PM EDT
I believe that the answer is shirt pocket based. And I would say that adding resolution to the display in the same size is preferable to virtual displays, because the viewing device is basically a set of reading glasses. I'm at the reading glasses age and already have to use them on my 640X480 display (2.8" diagonal) when I've got the font size optimized for maximum info. This gives you the option of using the devices without specs when you have the luxury of zooming out (translate, don't need to see a lot of text or graphics) but allows you to take advantage of XGA resolution (or higher) with specs...
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selinz
9/17/2010 1:12 PM EDT
And by the way, the mirasol display that is on my AR Bluetooth bridge is B/w, not color. I look forward to their color version in my new shirt pocket maximized smart phone! :-)
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Luis Sanchez
9/17/2010 6:36 PM EDT
The e-reader seems to be the killer app for a non transmitting display. This one being color is a must see. Thoug, we don't really need our text to be colored right? But then again, books not only include text right?
And that's right... there hasn't been a lot of activity or noise in regards creating virtual reality products. Perhaps people don't really want to be immersed in to such un-productive states.
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elPresidente
9/20/2010 3:36 PM EDT
If you are in a humid indoor environment all day, say like a plant biologist in Minneapolis would be, and you step into your car on a cold January evening - Mirasol will seize up completely, possibly damaged forever due to ice formation in the hygrophillic polymers that are used to make it. From what little I know, this came out of a lab and the lead PhD has no answers for the reality of a real world deployment - just bandaid after bandaid. I suspect the larger display size has a lot to do with this lack of technology pragmatism as well. And if you have to use LEDs to see it in low light conditions, how is that any different than backlighting a conventional LCD?
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chanj
9/20/2010 8:48 PM EDT
The display size may not matter as much as long as the resolution is high enough. 5 to 7 inches are good size for 1 page display. A 10" iPad is proven to be a good size for 2 pages display. In addition, for movie, magazine and newspaper, 10" would be a better size than anything smaller imo.
Power consuming is certainly an issue in the current LCD or OLED type display. Unable to be read under sunlight is another issue. The value of Mirasol is clearly seen. I wonder how much it is compared to LCD and OLED.
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