Displays - Page 45

Our friends over at MobileGeek have sent us a tip, and what a tip it is - they're live at Touch Taiwan, checking out the upcoming display technology that we'll see baked into our mobile devices in the coming years.

There's a lot to cover in the video, above, 4.3-inch flexible AMOLED, 960x540 resolution and just 0.2mm thick. AUO is just teasing us here, though, as this is just a technology demo. AUO also showed off a 4.7-inch 720p HD display that is ultra-thin, with the one on the left a display that we would find in a tablet on the market today.

How thin are we talking though? The one on the left, which is a conventional display is just 1.19mm thick, but AUO's tease is a tiny 0.34mm thick - just a third of the thickness of a conventional panel. Then we have AUO pushing out a 512 PPI display running 4.3-inch ultra high-density LTPS display running 1920x1080 pixels. 0.6mm thick at the border, which is beautiful.

Well, LG, where did this come from, eh? The South Korean giant has just announced that it's developed a new 5.5-inch display that crams in an insane 538 pixels per inch.

This sets a new record for pixel density in smartphones, with the closest panel in something like the HTC One having 'just' (we can say that now) 468 PPI, and the iPhone 5 having a now dismal 326 PPI. LG has also said that the new 5.5-inch high-pixel panel is "only 1.21 millimeters thin with a 1.2 millimeter bezel measured in LCD modules."

This achievement makes it thinner than any other display... in the world. 538 PPI on a 5.5-inch panel gives us a resolution of 2560x1440, on a mobile phone, which is the same resolution of the monitor I'm writing this news on. Crazy stuff. Life must be Good at LG right now.

Today, Acer announced the release of three new ultra high-resolution monitors aimed at enhancing the quality of your computing experience. Of the three new monitors released, two of them are being dubbed as highly ergonomic, while the third is a Windows 8-compatible touchscreen. All three models feature IPS panel displays that offer 178 degrees of uninhibited viewing as well as 100,000,000 to 1 contrast ratio.

Up first is the 27-inch Acer T272HUL that boasts an impressive 2560x1440 pixel resolution, which is officially being given the term "extreme definition." This monitor is able to display 1.07 billion colors across its 10-point touchscreen. Featuring a silver asymmetrical stand and a clear plastic edge that extends always down to the desktop surface, this sleek, ultramodern monitor is the perfect choice for Windows 8 users looking for that ultra high definition experience.

Up next, we have the two more normal looking monitors, the B276HUL and the B296CL. The smaller 27-inch model features a 2560x1440 pixel resolution, while the much larger 29-inch screen features a smaller resolution of 2560x1080 pixels. Both models are capable of displaying 16.7 million colors and feature a base that allows the screen to rotate into portrait orientation. Both monitors feature DVI-D, Display Port, and two HDMI ports. Additionally, a four port USB 3.0 hub is present.

Today, LG Electronics announced three new additions to its IPS 21:9 UltraWide line of PC monitors. LG says that "the new monitors enable users to work on multiple files simultaneously as well as maximize their movie and gaming experience." The three new models--29EA73, 29EB73 and 29MA73--all feature LG's 29-inch IPS 21:9 display but differ in feature sets.

The 29MS73 model features a built-in TV tuner as well as the new Extra View picture and teacher feature that gives users the ability to access TV schedules, smartphone games, and other content in the extra window while watching TV at the same time. The 29EB73 model features an ergonomic adjustable stand that makes it easy to reposition the monitor to a comfortable height to reduce neck strain, stress, and to create a more productive work environment. It appears that the 29EA73 is a normal PC monitor with not many extra features.

All of the new UltraWide monitors feature a new enhanced four-screen split feature which automatically divides this display into four segments to allow quick and easy multitasking from the desktop. The segments are repositionable with just a few mouse clicks and there is a built-in Dual Link-up feature that allows users to simultaneously access and view information stored from to external devices such as smartphones or other PCs.

Not even two days ago, TCL announced their new 50-inch 4K-capable TV for the US market, costing only $999. Australian's are usually the last market that most companies cater for, but TCL have decided to go Down Under early.

The company have announced the TCL E5691, which is a 65-inch edge-lit LED 4K/UHD TV, for $4999. Expensive, but considering high-end 65-inch 1080p HDTVs are around that price in Australia, you can't complain too much. TCL will be cramming in SMS on Demand, SMH.TV, YouTube, Facebook, Twitter and other apps into the TV. As for inputs, we have three HDMI inputs, 3D-support, and a USB port that supports Time Shift PVR settings.

The TCL T5691 provides a 4096x2160 resolution, and will upscale HD content to 4K, meaning that your Blu-ray movies will look a little nicer than they usually do. TCL will be releasing other sizes, which has my interest more. We start with the 40-inch for $899, a 46-inch model for $1199, a 50-inch version for $1399 and a non-3D version that comes in 32-inch for $549.

I'm still looking forward to unboxing my first 4K, or Ultra HD, display, but until then I can only dream. But, during SIGGRAPH this week, Dell unveiled their new UltraSharp 32.

Dell's UltraSharp 32 is a 32-inch 4K-capable display that features an IGZO-based 3840x2160 display. Beautiful. Dell has opted for an aluminum stand, which replaces their usual plastic-based stand in previous models. The usual height adjustment is at play, and the UltraSharp 32 is jam-packed full of display inputs.

We have miniDisplayPort ports, HDMI, a built-in USB hub and an SD card reader. Dell haven't told us how much we can expect it to suck from our bank accounts just yet, but we should all prepare for Q4 of this year, just in time for the holidays.

I really want an Ultra HD TV and Sharp may have just unveiled something I might truly be interested in. A THX-certified, 70-inch 4K display that costs $8,000. This is a lot, especially compared to Seiki sets, but THX certification isn't just handed out to any device.

Sharp says that this new device will arrive in mid-August, and wdill include four HDMI inputs that accept native 4K, two USB ports, an SD card reader and it will all arrive in a beautiful ultra-thin frame that allows the 70-inch beast to take up the same space as a normal 65-inch set.

Sony Australia have today announced the local pricing for two new LCD models which join the growing range of 4K resolution displays.

Whilst the previously released 84" X9000 series Bravia retains its wallet busting $24999 price tag, the new, smaller models come in at a far more affordable (in comparison) price range. The 55" X9000 series Bravia will retail at $5999 and the larger 65" X9000 model will retail at $8999 when they go on sale in the next few weeks.

Sony are also offering a pack of eight Sony Pictures "Mastered in 4K" Blu-ray titles to 4K Bravia purchasers, consisting of the following titles: Angels & Demons, Battle: Los Angeles, Ghostbusters, The Karate Kid (2010), The Amazing Spider-Man, Spiderman, The Other Guys and Total Recall (2012).

Computex Taipei 2013 - If any of you follow my posts or content, you'll know that I'm a huge resolution and refresh rate lover, and I cannot wait to get my hands on a 4K monitor. ASUS unveiled their new 4K-capable monitor last week, but we snuck into the Nangang halls today to hopefully capture it, and voila - we did!

You can see it in all of its high-resolution glory, and I was even lucky enough to talk to an ASUS rep who confirmed we can expect a price of around $3999 US, and it should be available some time after July. You can expect at least a couple of us here at TweakTown to have these on our desks in the near future, and plenty of 4K content to come in 2013!

I'm a huge fan of high-resolution displays, and simply cannot wait for 4K to arrive just that little bit cheaper - I really want 4K 120Hz-capable displays - I'm dreaming, I know. But it looks like Apple could be pushing forward with 4K, refreshing iMacs, Cinema Displays and MacBook Pros with the high-resolution goodness.

Rumor has it Apple is moving toward 4K thanks to the new Intel Thunderbolt release, which the chipmaker showed off during a demo called "Thunderbolt Technology Update". This is basically the second-generation Thunderbolt technology, which is capable of pushing "4K video file transfer and display simultaneously". Marco Armanet, co-founder of Tumblr and founder of Instapaper, has said on his blog:

During this week's Microsoft TechForum, Craig Mundie, a senior advisor for Microsoft, said that the company is looking to take the Kinect to new heights including TV's and laptops. "My dream is to get a Kinect into the bezel of something like this", as he pointed to a Surface tablet.

The company was showing off a bulky, but very large display that featured a Kinect built into its bezel at its recently opened "Envisioning Center" along with many more Kinect integrated screens. The Kinect's being shown off were much smaller than the current model, but no one would comment on if they are version 2.0 or not.

Before you can expect to see a Kinect in your ultra-thin smart TV, or even in your laptop or desktop monitor, things will have to get much smaller and some new technology will have to be created. The Kinect sensor does not work in daylight. "It turns out it's infrared so when you go out in the sunlight the sun is a big infrared source that drowns it out," Mundie explains. "There's a whole bunch of problems, not just miniaturization, in designing the sensors so they actually do what you expect them to do in all of the environments."

Something we will be getting more into this year is 4K Ultra HD technology, this is the next-gen of PC and it's some seriously hot stuff. The Windows blog got their hands on a 55-inch 4K-capable Ultra HD TV and ran some DirectX 11 games on it.

They tried Max Payne 3 with an AMD Radeon HD 7970 and saw some great details from the game. The one thing to remember here is the insane amount of pixels being pushed from the 4K Ultra HD TV set. At 1280x720, you're barely scraping 1-megapixel of information at 0.91 megapixels. The standard now, 1920x1080, pushes 2.07 megapixels - but 4K? An insane 8.2 megapixels... a huge, huge jump. That jump requires some serious GPU horsepower.

The TV being used was set to just 30Hz, so the maximum frames per second will be 30. The 4K display wasn't the only one being used, with the GPU driving 3 other displays, too. There's a video on the site which you should check out, too.

VESA have officially updated their DisplayPort Dual-Mode 1.1 standard which paves the way for better performance, higher resolutions and increased interoperability when using HDMI and DVI ports through a cable or an adapter.

When using Dual-Mode, DisplayPort will be capable of outputting an additional HDMI/DVI-compatible signal alongside its expected DisplayPort link. What this will allow is connectivity for HDMI and DVI-capable devices without the need for cables or converters featuring active electronics. Current DisplayPort Dual-Mode converters/adapters are limited by an output maximum of 1080p @ 60Hz with 24-bit color.

This update to DisplayPort Dual-Mode would allow HDMI 1.4 to be quite versatile, handling deep-color, 3D 1080p @ 60Hz and 4K UHD (2160p) @ 30Hz, all through a single cable. These improvements are thanks to a near doubling in the Transitional-Minimized Differential Signal (TMDS) rate, which has been ramped up from 165MHz to 300MHz.

CES 2013 - Something quite astounding shown off at CES 2013 was from AMD where they had a dark room called the AMD SurRound House. The SurRound House was filled with TVs and looks like it's quite incredible to experience.

Bill Herz, Chief Multimedia Technologist at AMD, lead people into a room that was filled with 10 "windows", or 1080p-capable TVs. These TVs when added up are pushing a resolution of 10,800x1920 - I'll let you sit there for a minute thinking of that resolution - which is 20 megapixels of imaging. The resolution is pumped at 30 frames per second, which is 600 megapixels per second.

It's not all just about video, either, as audio is an equal part of the SurRound House experience. There were four speakers per TV, providing 32 channels of audio showcasing discrete digital multi-point audio. The audio is to lead the visual experience, telling your brain where to expect to look based on the audio.

CES 2013 - Check out the following picture. It was taken by a camera about a half-inch from the screen. As you can see, text on 1080p at 55"+ is somewhat blurry.

Now, check out the following. Different TV, same picture and roughly same screen size. Only difference? 4K resolution.

That's pretty impressive, right? You can clearly see the difference between the two and how 1080p, when stretched to a large screen size, becomes blurry. But why should you care? Why should you buy a 4K TV? The simple answer: you shouldn't. Now, you're probably saying "Why not?!?!" and the answer is simple.

Google TV hasn't quite taken over the world, but it looks like more TVs are going to be released next year with partner LG stepping up to the plate announcing new sets.

The South Korean electronics giant have current Google TV-powered sets in both 47- and 55-inch models but will expand this range to offer five different sizes. The new sizes will be 42-, 50- and 60-inch options. LG haven't stopped there, either, they've also updated the design of the TVs, too, giving them a thinner bezel and new support legs.

LG's new TVs will ship with Google TV 3.0, as well as built-in OnLive support. LG will bring their new Google TV 3.0-powered TVs to CES 2013, so it'll only be a few weeks until we get some hands-on time with them.

We have been hearing about flexible displays for years now. It seems that every display company sees these as the future of mobile display technology. Up until now the claims have been mostly vaporware and prototypes only found inside labs. Samsung has announced that they will be showing off a 5.5 inch flexible display at CES 2013.

The display will most likely not be featured in any device releases in the near future, but the 720p prototype will be sure to grab the attention of all who get to see it in person.

We are going to take a chance and say that the display is OLED (Organic Light Emitting Diode) based, but we could be wrong. We want to hear from you on this whole flexible screen idea. Do you think that we will one day be able to roll up our smart phones and place them in our pockets?

Sharp have just announced a beautiful new screen, dubbed the PN-K321. The PN-K321 is built for professionals in mind, sporting a 4K resolution (3840x2160) as well as HDMI and DisplayPort connectivity.

Sharp has some bragging rights with the PN-K321 in the way that they claim it is the industry's thinnest frame, measuring in at just 35mm thick. We should expect a price of around 450,000 yen, or around $5500. The 4K-capable 32-inch monitor is to debut in February 2013, so it should be flashing itself around at CES in Las Vegas in January next year.

It's great that we're finally see desktop-bound 4K-capable screens in a decent size, just 32-inch, and not 85-inch like the huge HDTVs lately. At $5500 - it's also priced decently. 30-inch monitors were around $3000-$3500 when they debuted, so this is not that far out from those prices, for a much higher-res screen. I want one, no, three of them.

It looks like Sony are really pushing their new 4K TV, the XBR-84X900 Ultra HDTV - which is set to not leave first adopters twiddling their thumbs without 4K content when they drop over $20k on a new 4K TV. Ray Hartjen from Sony jumped on the company's blog to address some consumers concerns over the new 4K resolution-specific features that will ship with the new TV.

The new TV will feature three chipsets that will help give the X-Reality PRO picture engine the extra juice it requires to upscale today's programming to close to 4K quality, this includes even your collection of current Blu-rays that you already own. It does get better, much much better - in that the new Sony XBR-84X900 Ultra HDTV will include the world's first 4K Ultra HDTV delivery solution.

The new TV will come pre-loaded with native 4K content, and won't be just some flyover demos of a forest, but would be full-length Hollywood productions, available only to those who purchased this specific TV. There's no exact details of what content to expect, or what 4K delivery solution will be deployed, so we'll have to wait a little while longer to find out. Sony's 84-inch Ultra HDTV sports a resolution of 3840x2160, and has been up for pre-order since September for the wallet-busting price of $25,000.

Windows 8 is mere hours away, and now we have Dell announcing theri 23-inch S2340T display. The Dell S2340T sports a 1920x1080 resolution, flexible positioning (take that as you will), with an articulated stand, supporting up to 10 points of simultaneous multitouch, all on an edge-to-edge glass panel.

We're looking at a 23-inch, VIS display with LED backlight, a 1920x1080 resolution at 60Hz and a 178-degree viewing angle. Filling out the number side of things, we have an 8,000,000:1 dynamic contrast ratio. DisplayPort and HDMI connectivity are on offer for inputs.

The S2340T does have one requirement that most monitors don't have: it needs to be connected to a USB3.0 port to enable the touchscreen. The monitor itself provides more USB3.0 ports on-board, Gigabit Ethernet, a headphone port and microphone port. Dell's S2340T needs Displaylink's multitouch driver for functionality to enable, and the S2340T is not Mac-compatible right now, but will be in the future through a drive update.