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LG's new touchscreens will make your next laptop thinner and lighter
LG's display subsidiary is promising drastically thinner, lighter touchscreens that will be ready for notebooks later this year. With full HD (1080p) resolution, the Advanced In-Cell Touch (AIT) screens substitute a touch panel layer for a touch sensor built into the LCD itself -- that's what makes it thin. It's the same tech found in smartphones like LG's own G4, but this is the first time it's been sized up to laptops. Thickness savings will be around 25 percent, while weight reductions could be as much as 35 percent compared to typical laptop touchscreen. That reduction in layers also translates to less light reflection, which LG Display reckons will make the new screens brighter and clearer. The company plans to roll out multiple sizes, with stylus-compatible models also on the way. If these screens are going to shave the profile of your next Ultrabook even further, there might be no other choice but to go with a few of those oh-so-slender USB-C ports.
Sony Xperia V packs new sensor-on-lens touchscreen tech, promises a 'true direct touch experience'
If you thought LG's Optimus G and Nokia's Lumia 920 had future touchscreen tech all sewn up, then be ready to welcome Sony's own contribution. Its sensor-on-lens touchscreen will debut on the Xperia V, combining the sensor and lens component of a standard capacitive display, reducing the number of layers, glare and other interference. This improves both image quality and the screen's responsiveness -- Sony reckons the experience brings it in line with the aforementioned on- and in-cell touch display technology. During our brief hands-on at IFA, we found the Xperia V was certainly responsive enough, but perhaps some of that sensation can be attributed to the new screen, rather than the dual-core Snapdragon processor powering it. We'll be sure to give it a thorough testing when our review model appears.
iPhone 5: the rumor roundup
We're on the cusp of Apple's sixth iPhone launch, and there's very different expectations than there were last year. The 2011 rumor cycle left more than a few people burned: the later-than-usual October launch and repeated claims of a heavily-remade design led some to a disappointment when the iPhone 4S arrived, even though the final product had a slew of camera, speed and voice command upgrades. This year, the rumors have been grounded well before there was an event date in our hands. There have been fewer instances of wild rumors. Instead, it's been based more around pragmatism, using either tangible leaks or sources that have a solid track record. Think of the perennial leaks from the Wall Street Journal or the increasingly well-established sourcing from iMore and The Loop. Whether you're conspiracy-minded or not, it's been hard to ignore the sheer number of claims that have tamped down expectations rather than inflated them. It's as though there's a collective fear we'll see a repeat of the 2011 hysteria and deal with fans (or detractors) complaining about missing features that were never promised in the first place. Where last summer was full of uncertainty, this year there's a mounting consensus as to what we'll see, how we'll get it, and when. Tracking everything that's been mentioned may be a handful, however. With that in mind, we'll dive in and gauge what's likely to emerge from behind Apple's curtain on September 12th -- as well as what we can rule out from the get-go.
LG teases that Optimus G will have 768p gapless display, long-lifespan battery
LG must know that word of the Optimus G has been spoiled, even if it's not quite ready to put all its cards on the table. While it's only acknowledging the phone's identity under a 'G' codename, the Korean electronics giant is willing to talk a lot about what's under the hood. Among the truly new revelations: that uncommonly wide 1,280 x 768 screen, now called the G2 Touch Hybrid Display, is a 30 percent thinner gapless panel that puts the LCD right near the glass in a way that just might be familiar to HTC One X owners. We don't know for certain if it's one of those newly-shipping in-cell touch panels, but that name certainly suggests LG is setting aside a few of those cutting-edge LCDs for itself. There's also a treat in store for those who work their phones to the bone -- a newly refined battery can go through 800 full recharge cycles before it gives up the ghost, or about 60 percent more than we've seen in the past. Combine these with the quad-core 1.5GHz Snapdragon S4 Pro we already knew was coming, and the Optimus G could be quite the technology showcase for both LG's native South Korea as well as the US through a possible Sprint model.
LG Display starts volume production of in-cell touch screens, we have a hunch as to who wants them
Looks like we'll be finding in-cell touch displays in our devices sooner rather than later: LG Display has confirmed that it's been mass-producing the thinner LCDs since earlier in August. CEO Han Sang-beom also notes that manufacturing has been going as smooth as, well, glass. Despite the complexity of building touch input directly into a display, the company expects to keep the supply going "without any fail," according to the executive. As to who's making the orders? LG Display isn't naming its customers on the record, and production could be as much for its sister company's phones and tablets as anyone else's. It's hard not to pinpoint Apple as the 800-pound gorilla in the room, however. Apart from Apple representing one of LG Display's biggest existing customers, multiple rumors and component leaks point to an iPhone with an in-cell display being in the works. The timing raises a distinct possibility that we'll know more about the screen manufacturer's clients in less than a month.
Apple gets patent for in-cell touch display with impeccable timing
So Apple could be working on an iPhone with a thinner display, you say. Look what we have here, possibly in the nick of time: it's a newly granted Apple patent for a screen with in-cell touch, where the LCD and touch recognition are integrated into one panel instead of stacking up in separate layers. Apple's implementation would slim things down by either having electrodes share duties, both driving the display and taking finger input, or stuffing two electrodes into each pixel to accomplish the same goal. The net effect isn't just one of squeezing a device into a thinner chassis; the company also envisions costs coming down by reducing the number of parts and streamlining the manufacturing process. As envisioned, the screen looks like an ideal fit for a significant revamp of Apple's mobile display technology, although we'd be careful about assuming that this or any in-cell touch implementation is a lock for potentially imminent iOS hardware. Apple first filed the patent in early June 2007, before the original iPhone had even marched into a retailer -- display technology has come a long way since then.
Sony LT25i Tsubasa pops up in benchmarks, may swell the high-speed Xperia ranks
Add another future Sony Xperia model to a rapidly growing pool. The LT25i Tsubasa (not to be confused with the ST25i/Xperia U) has been caught by Tencent in AnTuTu and NenaMark2 tests, seemingly running the same mix of a 1.5GHz Snapdragon S4, a 720p screen and Android 4.0 that we've seen in the upcoming Xperia T (LT30p). So what's different? There's rumors of in-cell touch to keep the display thin and vivid, but even the unverified source isn't certain that it will become a reality. The crew at Xperia Blog also claims that there will be international LTE and HSPA+ models along with China- and Japan-specific editions. Assuming the details are at all consistent with the truth, having the Tsubasa arrive on the scene mostly hints that Sony might be readying a broader speed-up of its roster than we first thought.
WSJ: Next iPhone to have even thinner screen
Apple's next smartphone iteration will reportedly pack new screen technology that shaves a small amount from the screen thickness. According to the Wall Street Journal's sources, the new in-cell technology integrates the touch sensor into the screen, shedding around half a millimeter and due to the reduced space between screen and user, could well improve image quality. Although a mere 0.5 mm reduction may not mean much for the phone's frame, it could help offset any weight added by a larger screen. The Wall Street Journal also reports that the still-LCD screens will be made by joint venture Japan Display, LG Display and Sharp. Manufacturers are apparently battling to maintain high-yield rates on the new screen technology, which until now has been limited to bigger displays. Hit up the source for the full report.