Tag Archives: panel

2012 iPhone’s maybe-finished front appears with center camera, may straighten our FaceTime chats

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2012 iPhone's possibly finished front turns up with center camera, may straighten out crooked FaceTime chats

A claimed test sample of the 2012 iPhone's complete body has already made the rounds, but it was using a rough front panel that wasn't supposed to be wholly representative of the finished work. Frequent part leaker Apple.pro has uncovered a sample which might be closer to the real deal: the white example shows the space for the taller screen that we've come to know, just with a conspicuously shifted FaceTime camera that now sits above the speaker. It's a small change, but it suggests Apple is going for much more of a family resemblance this time around -- a previously claimed 2012 iPod touch panel was merging the fourth-generation iPod's already centered camera with the taller display. While there's still room for this to be a creative fake or an interim design, the consistency hints that Cupertino is keen to shake things up a bit for the iPhone's fifth birthday.

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2012 iPhone's maybe-finished front appears with center camera, may straighten our FaceTime chats originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 16 Jul 2012 10:53:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Utah researchers create ‘Spintronic’ LED, claim it’s ‘brighter, cheaper’ and eco-friendly

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Utah researchers create 'Spintronic' LED, claims its 'brighter, cheaper' and ecofriendlySpintronics? Not exactly a new term 'round these parts, but University of Utah physicists are applying it in a unique way that may eventually make TVs look even sharper than they do today. The entity is trumpeting a new "spintronic" organic light-emitting diode (that's OLED, for short) that's said to be "cheaper and more environmentally friendly than the kinds of LEDs now used in television and computer displays, lighting, traffic lights and numerous electronic devices." Z. Valy Vardeny is even going so far as to call it a "completely different technology," and better still, a prototype has already been made. The professor expects that the newfangled tech -- which produces an orange glow today -- will be able to product red, blue and white spin OLEDs within a few years. It's a lot to wade through, but here's our question: will these things make the Galaxy S XI impeccably visible in outdoor sunlight? (Please say "yes.")

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Utah researchers create 'Spintronic' LED, claim it's 'brighter, cheaper' and eco-friendly originally appeared on Engadget on Sat, 14 Jul 2012 18:36:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Sony, Panasonic OLED partnership is official, aims for mass production in 2013

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The rumor that Japanese electronic giants Panasonic and Sony would team up on OLED HDTV technology has been confirmed by a press release (included after the break), and the two plan to establish mass production in 2013. Together, they'll be able to utilize the core and printing techniques that each has so far developed separately to roll out HDTV-sized OLED panels. Still, while they will be BFFs behind the scenes don't expect any crazy cross-branding of releases, as the release notes each company plans to "develop and commercialize its own competitive, high-performance, next-generation OLED televisions and large-sized displays." Can this combination help them catch up to Korean counterparts Samsung and LG? Those two will individually put super-skinny, ultra high contrast ratio OLED HDTVs on store shelves this year, but if Panasonic / Sony can get prices down from the $10k~ range then we're sure most consumers will be able to overlook their tardiness to market.

Continue reading Sony, Panasonic OLED partnership is official, aims for mass production in 2013

Sony, Panasonic OLED partnership is official, aims for mass production in 2013 originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 25 Jun 2012 02:49:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Purported fifth-gen iPod touch panel slips out, shows a tall 4.1-inch screen that’s possibly iPhone-bound

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Purported fifth-gen iPod touch panel slips out, show a tall 4.1-inch screen that's possibly iPhone-bound

It's been a long, long time since Apple undertook a significant redesign of the iPod touch, which hasn't been looked at since 2010 and received just a splash of white last year. A possible front panel part leak we've just seen could overturn all that -- and hint at the 2012 iPhone's direction in the process. If we go by the claims of MacRumors' supplier friends, the media player would be growing up, but not out, with a taller 4.1-inch screen. We're skeptical, as the white part (black on the inside) seems almost too good to be true -- we haven't seen anything similar elsewhere in the unofficial parts market. Still, having heard murmurs of larger iPhone screens and knowing Apple's own tendency to base the iPod touch on whatever iPhone flavor is new this year, we could be looking at iPhones and iPods growing for the first time since 2007. There's also some as yet unconfirmed next-gen iPhone parts included by the source, although we'd hesitate to call them smoking guns unless they're put together in Apple-like form later in the year.

Purported fifth-gen iPod touch panel slips out, shows a tall 4.1-inch screen that's possibly iPhone-bound originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 22 May 2012 14:43:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Samsung considering a 13-inch, 1080p, PLS panel, display snobs get their hopes up

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Samsung considering a 13-inch, 1080p, PLS panel, display snobs get their hopes up

It's a ritual: we publish a review of a laptop with a 1366 x 768 display, the best-rated comment is from someone crying out for 1600 x 900 -- nay, 4K resolution. If you're in the latter camp, you're going to be disappointed by even this article, but for those of you who've merely been craving something, anything crisper than mere HD, we have some hope: Samsung is mulling the idea of a 13-inch, PLS display with a 1920 x 1080 pixel count. Earlier today a company rep told a group of reporters that the PC division is considering a 1080p panel of that size, which would be unusual, to say the least. The outfit isn't ready to make any promises, much less commit to an ETA, though we can't say we'd be surprised if the company made such a display for its 13-inch laptops first -- after all, for instance, some of its 13-inch panels make use of IPS-like PLS technology, whereas its 15-inch ones don't yet. We'll let you decide if that's even necessary -- both the 13- and 15-inch Series 9 already have 1600 x 900 resolution -- but suffice to say, the company has a good track record of squeezing in extra pixels when other ultraportable makers don't.

Samsung considering a 13-inch, 1080p, PLS panel, display snobs get their hopes up originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 16 May 2012 19:14:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Samsung exec admits the 15-inch Series 9 could benefit from better viewing angles

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When we reviewed the 15-inch Samsung Series 9, we found very little to complain about, save for the narrow viewing angles and the fair-weather trackpad. Turns out, Samsung at least agrees with the first part. In a show of candor, Raymond Wah, VP of PC product strategy, told a group of reporters, "We can make improvements in terms of the viewing angle." That's not surprising, given that Samsung's homegrown 15-inch display doesn't currently make use of the same IPS-like PLS technology as the panel used in the 13-inch Series 9. It would seem, then, that it's occurred to Samsung to develop one, though company reps declined to say when we might see a 15-inch Series 9 with such a panel in tow.

For now, anyway, the outfit is giving itself some credit for the laptop's relatively dense 1600 x 900 pixel count (and rightfully so!). Interestingly, Wah's comments come at a time when MacBook Pro rumors are starting to flow fast and furious, and a Retina display is looking like a fair possibility. As to whether Samsung will ever produce a 4K laptop display of its own, Wah declined to comment, but he did note that right now there isn't enough content optimized for that higher resolution, and that such screens would be costlier to produce. Until all that changes, we have to admit we're pretty pleased with the Series 9's resolution too -- after all, anything's better than plain old HD.

Samsung exec admits the 15-inch Series 9 could benefit from better viewing angles originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 16 May 2012 11:41:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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OLED Display Blocks pack six 128 x 128 panels, we go hands-on at MIT (video)

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How do you develop an OLED display that gives a 360-degree perspective? Toss six 1.25-inch panels into a plastic cube, then turn it as you see fit. That's an overly simplistic explanation for the six-sided display on hand at the MIT Media Lab today, which is quite limited in its current form, but could eventually serve an enormous variety of applications. Fluid Interfaces Group Research Assistant Pol Pla i Conesa presented several such scenarios for his Display Blocks, which consist of 128 x 128-pixel OLED panels. Take, for example, the 2004 film Crash, which tells interweaving stories that could be presented simultaneously with such a display -- simply rotate the cube until you land on a narrative you'd like to follow, and the soundtrack will adjust to match. It could also go a long way when it comes to visualizing data, especially when in groups -- instead of virtually constructing profiles of individuals who applied for a slot at MIT, for example, or segments of a business that need to be organized based on different parameters, you could have each assigned to a cube, which can be tossed into an accepted or rejected pile, and repositioned as necessary.

Imagine having a group of display cubes when it comes time to plan the seating chart for a reception -- each cube could represent one individual, with a color-coded background and a name or photo up top, with different descriptive elements on each side. The same could apply to products at monstrous companies like Samsung or Sony, where executives need to make planning decisions based on product performance, and could benefit greatly from having all of the necessary information for a single gadget listed around each cube. On a larger scale, the cubes could be used to replace walls and floors in a building -- want to change the color of your wallpaper? Just push a new image to the display, and dedicate a portion of the wall for watching television, or displaying artwork. You could accomplish this with networked single-sided panels as well, but that wouldn't be nearly as much fun. The Media Lab had a working prototype on display today, which demonstrated the size and basic functionality, but didn't have an adjustable picture. Still, it's easy to imagine the potential of such a device, if, of course, it ever becomes a reality. As always, you'll find our hands-on demo just past the break.

Gallery: MIT Media Lab: OLED Display Blocks hands-on

Continue reading OLED Display Blocks pack six 128 x 128 panels, we go hands-on at MIT (video)

OLED Display Blocks pack six 128 x 128 panels, we go hands-on at MIT (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 24 Apr 2012 17:44:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Researchers create incredibly thin solar cells flexible enough to wrap around a human hair

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You've probably heard that the sun is strong enough to power our planet many times over, but without a practical method of harnessing that energy, there's no way to take full advantage. An incredibly thin and light solar cell could go a long way to accomplishing that on a smaller scale, however, making the latest device from researchers from the University of Austria and the University of Tokyo a fairly significant discovery. Scientists were able to create an ultra-thin solar cell that measures just 1.9 micrometers thick -- roughly one-tenth the size of the next device. Not only is the sample slim -- composed of electrodes mounted on plastic foil, rather than glass -- it's also incredibly flexible, able to be wrapped around a single strand of human hair (which, believe it or not, is nearly 20 times thicker). The scalable cell could replace batteries in lighting, display and medical applications, and may be ready to be put to use in as few as five years. There's a bounty of physical measurement and efficiency data at the source link below, so grab those reading glasses and click on past the break.

Researchers create incredibly thin solar cells flexible enough to wrap around a human hair originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 04 Apr 2012 13:50:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink PhysOrg  |  sourceNature Communications  | Email this | Comments