Mini projectors spark worries about "visual pollution"
By Donald Melanson 
posted February 27th 2008 8:34PM
posted February 27th 2008 8:34PM
Texas Instruments and others have been touting mini (or pico) projectors without hesitation as of late, but it seems that not everyone is quite so excited about them, with some folks now even warning about a number of potential dangers. One of those naysayers is Future Laboratory founder Martin Raymond, who told the BBC that while the projectors (likely to be used primarily in cellphones) are "appealing initially," he has concerns about the devices causing "visual pollution," adding that there could be "inappropriate showing of things that maybe other people shouldn't be seeing." Needless to say, he also foresees new laws and legislation controlling the use of the technology. No matter how things shake out, however, the one thing that seems clear is that the humble laser pointer will soon be about as antiquated as the spitball when it comes to juvenile means of public embarrassment.
[Via About Projectors]
[Via About Projectors]
There are already $9 laser pointers with porn on them and its not a problem.
I don't think you are going to want a $1000+ digital projector confiscated (or smashed in).
The only difference is the potential for actual quality and movies.
I guess advertisers could use them, you could project an image onto the sidewalk for instance. A digital projector could make a good alternative to a billboard. Playing animations, rotating content etc but not being small like a normal massive plasmatv billboard. Because advertising isn't forced into your brain enough now days.
Umm...
1) This is not a feature people are clamoring for, so it's unclear why they're (wasting their money) researching this, and
2) Given the sizes of cell phone batteries and the energy needed to project an image at bright-enough-to-see brightness, "light pollution" shouldn't be a problem,
3) I'll smack it out of your hand if you shine that crap at me!
This may not be a feature clamored for, but it is a necessary step towards a feature everyone IS clamoring for -- a portable display not constrained to a portable form factor.
this just in...
nerds with low social skills and high technology: super fucking annoying
nice i will be able to project everywhere now; school, toilet, on my ceiling, lolz
God imagine what this will be like if they tie it in with video calling! Let everyone see the ugly mug of the person you are speaking to.
Ugh...well, there goes the cinema. I had a hard enough time with the damned laser pointers and nextel/sprint chirping. You know, seeing/hearing it in the 10 minutes before the movie is...sometimes almost amusing. But during....grr.
Enter: Whateverthehellkidswanttodisplayfromtheircellphone/miniprojectingdeviceinthemiddleofyour$10.00movie time.
Just use Geass to put the image into someone's head...
I'm more worried about the inevitable accidents that will be caused by inescapable distraction and disorientation. Seeing projected moving images in your peripheral vision will result in frequent illusions that *will* cause accidents.
To compensate, our brains will have to start filtering out information; treating much of our visual data to be nothing more than "visual noise" that is not processed. As a result, mankind would be conditioned to be less perceptive regarding our environments than we are now.
...
You should be on a committee..
It's hard to type legibly with a Wii remote!
Could projectors really be much more annoying than Nextel phones with the chirp and walkie talkie function?
And in regards to the people above who wondered which people keep inappropriate material on their cell phones...I would have agreed with you until today. At an event my fraternity brothers pulled out their cell phones and went around showing people who were interested videos of themselves pooing. That's right. Multiple people. Don't judge me.
I think the guy's way too paranoid. It's like... phones all have loudspeakers nowadays, do we see so much noise pollution from them? Not really.
Same thing. I can't imagine people along the street randomly shining nasty pictures or something. Even in a presentation, nobody's gonna be disrespectful either.
The only people likely to cause this visual pollution are those who have no respect for others and possibly like to turn on their loudspeakers out loud so everyone can hear what they're listening to.
I think the most interesting thing about Raymond’s comments is not how he feels the technology will be used but that he’s been conditioned to automatically assume that there will be new legislation against some new technology.
As a number of people have piointed out there are already laws to cover public (in)decency, and public behavious in general. We’ve had new technology which “shows things” for some time, laptop screens, portable projectors, gosh even these new fangled 8mm cine projectors with the sound on that 8-Track unit. Strangely none of these inventions caused "inappropriate showing of things that maybe other people shouldn't be seeing."
I suspect the best way of getting a quote published on the BBC’s site is to make sure that legislation is mentioned which in turn will get some MP’s really excited that they could be seen to be doing something to protect out poor public morals.
Projecting handguns just laying around in empty plane seats and other places could also be fun. "It was right there officer, somebody must have got it, but I saw it!!" Imagine the fun being able to empty entire concourses!
Hey Martin Raymond, do something useful with your time and make it so I can try to catch a few z's in an airport without being subjected to crappy cnn news showing standard aspect video stretched onto a widescreen.
I'm also for restricting the use of these devices.. It's already annoying to have to hear the damn mobilephones everywhere with annoying jingles, so having to see them is really a bitch.. User of Laserpointers is forbidden in our country, so I hope they also make these devices illegal..
Where might that be? Great Britain? Everything else is illegal there...
No, probably Lesser Britain, down under.
I don't know why people would use these for cellphones, but I could see one on a portable computer. Add a detachable keyboard and Bluetooth, and that's one sweet computer. For ultimate compactness, add in one of those projection keyboards: http://www.virtual-laser-keyboard.com/