E-readers as a whole best be watching their backs (or planning a wave of new functions, one), but it's safe to say that having color displays would give 'em a leg-up on the retina-killing, battery-draining LCD-based alternatives.
Plastic Logic is still working to get its first e-reader (the decidedly
not color
QUE, for those curious) into the paws of consumers, but already the outfit is planning for the next big thing. Achim Neu, Director SCM, recently spoke at the International Electronics Forum, reportedly stating that his company is aiming to "have a manufacturable color display by the end of 2011 and move it into volume production in 2012." Details beyond that were scarce, but still, 2012 seems a long ways out -- if Qualcomm can get its
color Mirasol panel into shipping products, there's a better than average chance that none of this will matter.
How can you not like colour ??
@ChillyCat
why does it have to be a color thing?
@ChillyCat I don't understand why people wouldn't like colour. It gives an overall better experience!
@ChillyCat There is a colour--resolution trade-off (except with mirasol I believe).
Usually each colour pixel is made of three or four sub-pixels. For the same sub-pixel density you could have a black and white display with twice the linear resolution.
Also with most e-ink-like displays, adding colour reduces the contrast.
@Timmmmmm Well, as an example, the 5" Sony reader which has an excellent display is 800x600 as far as I can make out.That means the resolution isn't high to begin with. I would think a reasonably performing color display is well within reach.
I don't care about refreshrates- but would at least like to have a 6-7" slim reader that can display color for magazine reading.
@h04
Comic Books
What does LCD do to the retina that kills it? People reply and explain please!!!
@Tehkseven4evee
Absolutely nothing! Engadget is jumping on the train to exaggerate things. The backlight of LCD displays tend to tire your eyes faster, which is uncomfortable over a long period of time. But that's all.
@SeeKo I hate the way Engadget always do this. They over eggagerate EVERYTHING and are so sarcastic most of the time!
@Tehkseven4evee
Actually I do enjoy the sarcasm very much. As long as it's not over the top.
@Tehkseven4evee Doesn't it boil down to the fact that even though you can't really notice it, a typical LCD screen refreshes quickly yet it does in fact wear on the eyes. E-ink is not being constantly refreshed which is why it's so 'good' to look at. Someone correct me if I'm wrong but I believe it's along these lines...
@Tehkseven4evee If reading an LCD were as hard on the eyes as some people claim, the Internet would be a ghost town and engadget would be in Braille.
@Stewie Vader
The frequency the screen refreshes is an issue too. True. But with reading it's mostly all about lighting conditions. How bright that light is, how far your eyes are away from the source and how the background bright/dark the surrounding light is. It can stress the eyes and in the worst case they start to hurt or you get dizzy.
A screen without backlight isn't ultimately better but under certain lighting conditions it's more comfortable than LCD.
I hope that was on purpose,
They over eggagerate EVERYTHING and are so sarcastic most of the time!
if it was, kudos....
@Tehkseven4evee "Engadget...are so sarcastic most of the time"
Um - have you ever read the comments under the articles?? We the readers don't have a right to complain about sarcasm... :-)
Too far off IMO
This is pretty cool. Less wasting of paper (trees).
@Mike Vick Yeah, and a new eReader every year is really easy on the environment ;-)
Not sure how these screens work in comparison to e-Ink, but I'm not a fan of the slow update times on the screen. Reminds me of several gnomes working behind an etch-a-sketch.
However, having a Harry Potter-esque newspaper/magazine would be quite neat.
Why does it seem like everything cool is coming out in 2012?
And what's with the dark picture?
@dardub
Pic has to be dark to show off vivid colors.
@lukesleepwalker
Well it's so dark I can't see the "vivid colors."
@dardub Don't you know the coolest things always comes out in 2 years?
Would love to see color e-ink from this group. Wish my company had the money to continually research but never deliver.
good, we see in color :) colors are awesome;;; notice all of the color on Engadget's web sight. And photos of gadgets in BW--- no thanks.
Mirasol aside; any competition in the color e-ink display market will drive down costs and increase innovation = better new-egg deals for the gadget lusting masses :)
Yeah, it's the difference between color inherent in the technology (which it isn't even in LCD) or not. mirasol makes color by manipulating light, or so their website says. It's inherent in their technology, so it doesn't need filters, etc like plasticlogic will.
www.mirasoldisplays.com/technology is where i found this explained.
2012?????
@malexandria1 Yea right, the non color device was supposed to be out since last year. Color won't happen until 2014 easy
Can you say iPad killer?
Plastic Logic is fighting a losing battle.
By the time it is released iPad will be close to the third gen.
Oh and the price better be lower than what they wanted for the Que.
By the way, is the Que ever coming out?
@ty1911 Well they, apparently, sold some units then "out of stock". I'm pretty sure that the Fujitsu color reader will be out by the time PlasticLogic even gives a picture of their "new" reader. They are waay too slow... More like PlasticSnail... amirite?
@darknessangel
I was going to buy one, but then the iPad came out and my wife told me that I should try it and see if it would do what I needed.
Sure enough it does do what I needed (view and edit my word docs) and have no need for the Que now.
Sorry plastic Logic, but if you came out 6 months ago you would have gotten my cash and not apple.
Ha, ha! I can't even buy their b/w reader now! And I waited for about 3 years! 2012... color... yeah, right!... perhaps after world's end. PlasticLogic is waaay too slow for the reader market. Before that, the Fujitsu from Japan will hit the global market plastic circuits or not.