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60 seconds with a giant, rollable display for your mobile devices
At some point, you've probably wished that your smartphone had a much larger screen to watch a movie or get work done... but you can't always lug a desktop display or tablet around, can you? If Insert Coin finalist RollRR has its way, you won't have to. It's developing rollable displays that would give your mobile devices a lot more visual real estate without consuming much space in your bag. The prototype on the Engadget Expand show floor is a 10.7-inch roll of e-paper attached to a giant tube, but the ultimate goal is to fit a 21-inch or larger screen (ideally, full color plastic OLED) into a gadget the size of a small umbrella. It's also considering touch technology like 3M's silver nanowires, so RollRR could expand your input area, too -- you could edit a large image on your phone just by unrolling the sheet on a table.
Not all of Samsung's curved displays are gigantic
Want a curved display from Samsung but don't quite have the scratch to bring one of its gigantic models home? Maybe try the 27-inch S27D590C monitor on for size when it releases at some ambiguous point in the future. The firm seems to be targeting gamers specifically with the monitor, saying that the curve creates a wider field of view (178 degrees horizontally and vertically, if you're curious) and gives the screen a "3D-like" effect when you're playing shooters and racing games, among other genres. There's even a one-button game mode that makes a few adjustments to compensate for motion blur, color and contrast too. Unlike Dell's not-flat display, however, this one's limited to a paltry 1,920 x 1,080 lines of resolution and a 16:9 aspect ratio. This'll probably be fine for us commoners, sure, but it might not be enough for the PC Master Race. Update: Samsung's curved monitor will be hitting shelves on October 1st for $430.
Dell outs 'world's first' 5K display with a massive 5,120 x 2,880 resolution
4K is so last week. Most of us haven't added one of those displays as part of our daily workflow yet, and Dell's 5K option is on the way. The UltraSharp 27 Ultra HD 5K monitor claims a world's first with said resolution. In terms of dimensions, that's 5,120 x 2,880 which clocks in at four times the resolution of QHD and seven times that of full HD. The panel itself is 218 PPI, putting it just shy of the 15-inch Retina MacBook Pro, and features the company's PremierColor tech and anti-smudge/anti-reflection edge-to-edge glass across its 27-inch facade. There are built-in "immersive acoustics" thanks to a pair of Harmon Kardon 16W speakers with six USB ports, on-board card reader and adjustable base for sorting tasks. If you're already wanting one for your office, you should probably start saving now. The UltraSharp model is set to arrive in Q4 with a $2,500 price tag.
Sproutling's new wearable tracks your infant's sleep patterns
Baby wearables. With the boom in fitness trackers, you must've seen them coming, right? Now, a pair of ex-Apple and Google employees has launched the Sproutling baby monitor, a device the company likens to Nest in terms of design and simplicity. Unlike the Withings Baby Monitor camera, however, it's meant to be worn around your baby's ankle. That way, it can monitor parameters like heart rate, skin temperature and body movement, while also tracking the room's temperature, humidity and light levels. All that data is sent to a smartphone app, which crunches it to create simple notifications. For instance, it can tell you whether her heart rate is higher than normal, if she's sleeping on her back, if it's warmer than ideal in the room or whether she's now awake and not in a good mood.
IRL: A 24-inch AOC monitor that doubles as a gigantic Android tablet
What can you do with 24 inches of Jelly Bean that you can't do with 10? Manufacturers like Acer, Asus and ViewSonic have been building oversized Android-powered devices for a couple years now; I was determined to find out why, so I spent a few weeks with AOC's own all-in-one. The hybrid external monitor will run you $370 on Amazon -- more than twice what you'll pay for a comparable 1080p screen -- but this pricier model adds stock Android 4.2.2 with a touchscreen interface. With the tap of a button, the integrated quad-core processor and eight gigs of storage spring into action, effectively converting this otherwise ordinary monitor into a complete Android-powered machine. There's even an integrated 720p webcam, and with stock Jelly Bean on board, you can install whatever apps you'd like from Google Play.
Spire breathing monitor can tell if you're stressed, relaxed or focused
Samsung's Galaxy S5 is supposed to be able to measure stress, but there's something about its "heart-rate variability" test that just isn't very convincing. (Namely, if you enjoy a brisk walk and raise your heart-rate slightly, the phone will sometimes report an increase in "stress.") By contrast, a new hip-worn sensor called "Spire" ignores your pulse in favor of monitoring breathing patterns instead. Its creators claim that these patterns can reveal periods of "tension, relaxation and focus," as well as allowing standard fitness tracking.
ASUS introduces us to the 'world's largest' curved LED monitor
ASUS announced a slew of high-profile devices at its press conference yesterday, but the company's booth at Computex still turned up a few gems today. Among them: a prototype of a 32-inch curved LED monitor, which ASUS says is the largest of its kind.
Here's a semi-professional 32-inch 4K monitor from ASUS
Following ASUS' $799 28-inch 4K monitor from earlier this year, the Taiwanese tech giant has today unveiled yet another high-res display, but this time it's aimed at semi-professionals instead of mainstream users. The new ProArt Monitor PA328Q is a 32-inch, 16:9, 3,840 x 2,160 monitor that boasts factory calibration with 10-bit color and 100 percent sRGB color gamut plus 350cd/m² brightness. On the back, you'll find three HDMI ports (one of which with built-in MHL 3.0), one DisplayPort 1.2, one Mini DisplayPort 1.2 and four USB 3.0 ports. ASUS added that this pretty monitor lets you adjust its tilt, swivel, pivot and height.
Catchr keeps an eye on your iPhone when you can't
Have you ever left your iPhone on a countertop or coffee table and wondered if a curious friend or family member did any snooping? Catchr is an app designed to answer that question by tracking all the app activity that happens on your device. Once you tell Catchr to begin its monitoring, the app records app status changes, with what the developer claims is 98 percent accuracy. When someone opens or closes an app on your phone -- whether it's you or not -- that activity is saved to a list by Catchr, which can be checked later. Each list is called a session. If the Catchr app is shut down, the session will be closed, but the list of previous app activity will still be available once you open the app again. The app also features a passcode lock, so you'll know that nobody's tampered with the logs. In addition to app activity, each recorded session also tracks how the app was closed -- whether by the authorized user or via a forced shutdown -- as well any GPS movement the phone experienced during that window. In all honesty, the amount of time your smartphone is out of your sight during an average day is probably rather small, but if you find yourself leaving your device to charge in places where it could be tampered with -- and if you don't want to set up a passcode lock in the meantime -- Catchr is an interesting alternative. It's a lightweight, relatively inexpensive (US$1.99) way to make sure nobody's been messing with your smartphone when it's out of your line of sight.
ASUS unveils 28-inch, $799 4K display targeting price-sensitive pros
ASUS' 31.5-inch 4K monitor may be the ideal display for many content creators, but a typical asking price over $3,000 rules it out for all but the most affluent. Much to our relief, the company is bringing the cost of its technology closer to Earth with a new 28-inch display, the PB287Q. It touts the extra-sharp 3,840 x 2,160 resolution of its bigger sibling, just in a smaller and cheaper form factor. You aren't giving up much in the way of features, either, as the 28-inch panel boasts a quick 1ms response time, DisplayPort, MHL-capable HDMI and a rotatable design. The real highlight, of course, is the discount -- the PB287Q will ship in the second quarter for $799, which both puts it on par with Lenovo's affordable 4K display and makes it easier to justify for penny-pinching workstation buyers.
Philips' 27-inch monitor with NVIDIA's G-Sync tempts gamers with silky-smooth visuals
When NVIDIA unveiled its G-Sync tech that alleviates lag, screen tearing, and stuttering, it counted Philips among the companies that would make monitors with its secret sauce. Now that CES has rolled around, Philips has finally revealed a panel that uses the graphic titan's technology. The panel (catchily dubbed 272G5DYEB) measures up at 27 inches and carries a resolution of 1,920 x 1,080, a 144Hz refresh rate, 1,000:1 contrast ratio and displays up to 16.7 million colors. If you're fixing to connect the screen to your PC via HDMI, you're out of luck as it only sports a DisplayPort. Enjoying the buttery visuals will drain your pockets of $649 when the monitor arrives this spring. Of course, if you can't wait till then, a modified ASUS VG248QE is already available with G-Sync from a handful of boutique PC outfits.
Acer's latest all-in-one doubles as a 27-inch touch monitor and Android PC
Perhaps the best way to regard Acer's growing range of Android "all-in-ones" is not as PC replacements, or even as giant tablets, but rather as touch-sensitive monitors that have the added benefit of being able to run their own OS. That certainly applies to the latest model, the TA272 HUL, whose 27-inch, 2,560 x 1,440, 10-point touch panel makes it particularly well equipped as a monitor for a Windows 8 PC. Alternatively, an "NVIDIA Tegra quad-core processor," which we suspect might be an old Tegra 3, will allow the unit to run basic tasks and media playback in Jelly Bean even when the source PC is switched off. The TA272 HUL comes with 16GB of onboard storage, a USB 3.0 port, HDMI and DisplayPort inputs and a 2-megapixel webcam, all for an RRP of $1,099. For reference, that's at least $100 more expensive than a similarly specced Acer monitor without Android (the T272 HUL), so you'd need to be pretty certain that you'll put that built-in OS to good use.
LG launching its first 4K monitor in January with 31-inch ultra-widescreen panel
LG's monitor division has been zigging lately while it's competitors zagged, skipping regular widescreen in favor 21:9 ultra-widescreen models. It's now made another interesting choice for its first 4K monitor, the 31-inch 31MU95. It'll feature a so-called DCI or Real 4K (4,096 x 2,160) IPS panel with a 19:10 ratio -- similar to a screen it demo'd at CES last year. For comparison's sake, most Ultra HDTVs and monitors like ASUS's first 4K model display 3,840 x 2,160 pixels at 16:9. Interestingly, the new offering conforms to the 4K format recorded by RED's Epic and Scarlet cameras and also packs a Thunderbolt 2 port with 20Gbps throughput. LG claims that'll let you monitor 4K footage and archive it up at the same time -- ideal for on-set movie playback or post-production, for instance. LG will also offer 34-inch and 29-inch UM95 models with 3,440 x 1,440 resolution at 21:9, which will display 99-percent of the sRGB gamut and come with LG's True Color calibration software. There's no pricing on any of the new monitors yet, but Dell's recently launched 32-inch 4K Ultrasharp model is running $3,299, by way of reference. The high-res panels and other ultra-widescreen business models from LG will arrive at CES 2014 in January -- naturally, we'll be there to fill in the wider picture.
Apple adds Sharp 4K monitor to EU Apple Online Store, then yanks it
For a short time over the weekend, it was possible to purchase a 32-inch Sharp 4K LED monitor via the Apple Online Store in various EU territories, but it has since been removed across the board. The massive display was priced at £3,499.00, which is roughly in line with the product's price elsewhere. The monitor never made an appearance on the US version of the store. As we inch closer to the debut of the new Mac Pro, whispers of Apple's plans to embrace desktop 4K displays has grown louder, and for a moment it appeared as though the company might have been offering a third-party alternative as a stopgap. The brief debut and almost immediate removal of the Sharp display could have been a simple error, or it could mean an Apple 4K display is closer than we think. We'll be watching our crystal ball for further hints. [via Macworld]
Dell's UltraSharp 32 and new UltraSharp 24 4K monitors are available now, 28-inch model on the way
4K is here to stay, what with a vast number of companies ramping up production on all types of different panels. Today, Dell is the latest one ready to join the frenzy in full force, announcing availability details for some new, super high-res monitors as part of its UltraSharp lineup. Naturally, the main feature here is the 3,840 x 2,160 resolution on them, although there are other highlights worth mentioning. For its part, the newcomer UltraSharp 24 (you know, the one we caught earlier) has an IPS LED screen with Dell's PremierColor tech, which translates to being able to support 99 percent of AdobeRGB colors, and offers access to HDMI, DisplayPort, USB 3.0 and a 6-in-1 card reader. The UltraSharp 32, meanwhile, boasts the majority of the same specs as its smaller 24-inch sibling, save for the fact it's sporting a 32-inch, IGZO LCD panel. Furthermore, Dell also took the time to reveal it plans to release a 28-inch model sometime in the near future, noting that this "will be the most affordable Ultra HD monitor in the industry when it is launched." Speaking of which, The UltraSharp 32 is now up for grabs worldwide for $3,499, while the $1,399 UltraSharp 24 is only available in South and North America to begin with and elsewhere on December 16th. No word yet on how much exactly the UltraSharp 28 will cost, but Dell did say we can expect it to be under $1,000 when it hits shelves in "early 2014."
Dell preparing to squeeze 4K resolution onto a 24-inch monitor
It's hard to know whether PC monitors will continue to be much of a focus for the new Dell. Nevertheless, the relevant department looks to have been gearing itself up for 4K, as Bright Side of News and others have spotted a leaked product page for a 24-inch IPS LED panel with 3,840 x 2,160 pixels. There's no price or availability information at this pre-launch stage, but we do have a bunch of specs: The UP2414Q has an 8-bit panel, with Advanced Frame Rate Control (AFRC) to try to simulate 10-bit color. It appears to lack HDMI 2.0, so it can only handle frame rates up to 30Hz over this type of connection, but it has DisplayPort 1.2 for 60Hz. It'd be nice to have a few more inches along the diagonal perhaps, but 4K on a 24-inch display still "only" equates to 185 ppi so maybe that's a safe limit for professionals requiring close-up perfection. Check out the source link for more on the color gamut, contrast/brightness and other vitals.
Toshiba's concept REGZA 40V and 50V 4K HDTVs double as pro-grade reference monitors
Toshiba's overall TV division may be ailing, but it's innovations like this that'll keep it from completely decaying. Displayed at the company's CEATEC booth here in Japan are two new 4K HDTV displays -- the 40-inch 40V and 50-inch 50V. Outside of devilishly-thin bezels and native 4K resolutions, the company's not talking specifications. What it's focusing on instead is the concept: it's dreaming of an Ultra HD range of displays that can operate as televisions and as pro-grade reference monitors. After all, budding editors who are being tasked with cutting together 4K footage certainly deserve a monitor that won't cut corners, right? A company representative informed us that while the displays weren't perfectly color accurate, they were far superior to rivals. Plus, the ability to easily toggle between reference mode and various other living room-accepted modes will enable a level of A/B testing that's pretty tough to get right now. Naturally, both monitors looked stunning up close, and if we're being candid, we're fallen in love with Photoshop all over again after seeing it displayed on these guys. Mat Smith contributed to this report.
LG develops 'world's first' WiDi-enabled LCD panel for easy media streaming
If you like to stream content but you already have too many set-top boxes in your house, LG wants to help. Having already committed to implementing 5G WiFi chips in its upcoming HDTVs earlier in the year, LG Display has developed a PC monitor that, it claims, is the first to integrate Intel's Wireless Display (WiDi) tech directly into the LCD component. It's not the biggest panel out there, at 23.8 inches, but it does mean you'll be able to stream anything you like from your WiDi-enabled laptop without additional gear. And while the market for WiDi-enabled displays is pretty thin right now, LG has said it will offer up its integrated panel tech to OEMs and other monitor makers, suggesting that you'll soon have a multiplicity of options for your streaming needs.
Eyes-on with Samsung's 31.5-inch 4K PC monitor
Samsung's continuing the UHD TV march here at IFA with plenty of sets, but it's also showing a 4K (3,840 x 2,160) 31.5-inch monitor that's built to sit on your desktop. Crisp images deliver on the Ultra High Definition promise, but the colors are particularly vibrant, due in part to the LED panel's ability to reproduce 1.07 billion colors and pictures that can cram in 99 percent of Adobe's RGB color spectrum. Because of that, the set easily distances itself from others that have flat, dull image reproduction. However, viewing angles leave something to be desired, as standing far off to the side clouds the monitor. Not only does this piece of kit churn out good imagery, but it easily tilts and pivots into a vertical position, to boot. When it comes to connectivity, the screen packs four USB ports and slots for HDMI, DVI-DL and DPX2. If you're ready to hook up this display to your PC, there will be some waiting involved -- no pricing or release details have been divulged. If you'd like to gawk at the firm's hardware, look out below for our gallery. Follow all of our IFA 2013 coverage by heading to our event hub!
Acer outs 27-inch WQHD touch display for €799
Acer certainly takes the cake for most product announcements before IFA's even officially begun. In addition to outing a new smartphone, tablet, all-in-one (and a few Haswell updates), the company is introducing a 27-inch WQHD display. The T272HUL's edge-to-edge, 2,560 x 1,440-pixel panel offers 10-point multi-touch, and the monitor's stand allows you to tilt the display up to 60 degrees. (It's also wall-mountable, if you're fancy like that.) A 2MP webcam and an integrated mic are also on board for video calls. Connectivity options include dual-link DVI, DisplayPort, HDMI and three USB 3.0 ports. The T272HUL will retail for €799 in September -- just don't look for this guy to hit the US. Follow all of our IFA 2013 coverage by heading to our event hub!
