The Display Industry News Source for 7.9.2012

Image via Digital Signage Connection

New Research Highlights Retailer Use of Digital Signage and Other New Technologies "A net 63 percent of retailers expect to increase IT spending in 2012 with the remaining 37 percent planning to cut back or hold the line. Large retailers expect to boost IT spending the most — 4.8 percent, on average. For all firms, the planned average increase is 4.2 percent. New developments in the areas of digital signage, social engagement, mobility, payment processing and other areas haven given retailers new tools and capabilities and, in some cases, challenges. One in three retailers currently use digital signage, with an additional 20 percent intending to do so soon, according to the CompTIA survey. Sales and promotional announcements and other direct engagement with customers are the most popular uses, cited by 71 percent of respondents." via Digital Signage Connection

Pilot of the future: U.S. Army gets wearable tech for the battlefield "If you happen to be in Farnborough, London, this week, you'll be able to see a demo of an Army pilot geared in the latest in wearable military technology -- a portable computing device that fits in a pocket and a display panel that can be strapped to a soldier's wrist. The entire Aviation Warrior (yes, that's what it is called) system -- which includes a helmet equipped with a flip-down viewing monocle and taps into the cockpit's digital display -- may seem like something that belongs in Battlestar Galatica, but it is no prop. Created by the Raytheon Company, the system provides access to important tools that help Army helicopter pilots maintain "situational awareness," according to the makers. "He can see where the good guys are and where the bad guys are," Todd Lovell, the chief engineer for Raytheon's technical services branch, put it simply when explaining part of what the technology does. ...The company has already outfitted older planes with a digital center display unit, replacing the analog dials of the past. The helmet -- with its display monocle -- connects into the center display unit, allowing pilots to see all the information provided by the unit without looking down at the display." via C|Net

Indonesia's Nexian launches a mobile phone with a 2.4" transparent OLED

Image via OLED-Info

"OLEDNet says that the OLED panel is made by Neoview Kolon. That's the first time we hear of NK actually producing transparent panels. They have been showing prototypes for a while though, including 2.4" panels indeed. It may also be that this is a panel made by Futaba, who's been producing 2.4" transparent PMOLEDs for a while." via OLED-Info

Amazon’s Next Kindle Fire Will Ship in Q3 With Improved Display "And, more importantly, developers familiar with the device have been instructed to build their apps for a display with a 1280 x 800 pixel resolution, which is a bit different than the 1024 x 600 display of the current Kindle Fire. Not only will that apparently make it sharper and more vibrant, it will give it a different aspect ratio, as well. In other words, the display has an entirely new width-to-height ratio. “The really interesting thing here is that the screen shape is changing slightly: From an aspect ratio of 1.71 (tall and narrow in its standard Portrait mode) to an aspect ratio of 1.60,” DisplayMate President Raymond Soneira told AllThingsD, when asked about what that means. Notably, that’s a fairly common aspect ratio in the tablet market. The 10.1-inch Toshiba Thrive and the Acer Iconia tablets both use 1280 x 800 displays. So, too, does Google’s new Nexus 7 tablet. And while raising the Fire’s resolution from 1024 x 600 to 1280 x 800 might not sound like a much of an increase, Soneira said it is an improvement. “That’s a 67 percent increase in total pixels, and it is visually significant,” he said. “It gives the display a PPI (pixels per inch) of 216.” That’s a pixel density 29 percent greater than that of the current Kindle Fire, which should improve visual clarity and image crispness. So, how will that increase in resolution affect the new Kindle Fire’s battery life or its overall design? Not all that much, apparently. Said DisplaySearch senior analyst Richard Shim, “The increase in pixel density isn’t as drastic as it was in the 1024 x 768 iPad 2 to 2048 x 1536 new iPad, so it’s less likely to significantly alter battery life or thickness.”" via All Things D

Which is Better? IPS vs. Non-IPS, LCD vs. Plasma, Glare vs. Non-Glare "At one point in time, it seemed that it would be too difficult to make and LCD much larger than about 40" whereas plasma screens, due to their larger sized pixels, were inherently big. However, as the industry has gotten better at making LCDs, there is now no difference in their availability in large sizes. but there is still a cost difference with Plasmas generally being cheaper in the same size. Plasma also has better response times and better off-axis brightness and contrast. Plasma's downsides are that the multiple layers of glass tend to produce greater reflections in a bright environment. The surface reflections can be combated with anti-glare coatings at additional cost. Plasmas also generally take more energy to run and plasmas used to suffer from an image burn in problem (leaving the same image on the screen for too long caused a semi-permanent residual image). The burn in problem is no longer an issue with the newer screens but the energy issue largely remains." via Flat Panel Display Blog

APPLE DITCHES EPEAT "I’m typing this post on a 17-inch MacBook Pro with the non-matte cover glassed LCD. The design is pleasing to my eyes, but functionally there are problems. First, glare. It’s distracting and I don’t like it. Second, the cover glass is not optically bonded to the LCD so there is an air gap. Well guess what, dust get trapped in there and when that happens it is irritating. The air gap also leads to light refraction and reflection that adds to the visual imperfections. Third, the cover glass adds weight and thickness. Apple took care of most of these problems with the retina 15-inch MacBook Pro. First, glare. It’s still there but there’s less of it. Second, Apple eliminated the cover glass and integrated the bezel into the top layer of the LCD itself. Other things that got eliminated along with the cover glass: air gap, trapped dust, refraction, reflection. Third, no cover glass means lighter and thinner. Fantastic, isn’t it? Not if you’re EPEAT or iFixit. Kyle Wiens, iFixit:" via Display Blog

NOVALED SIGN A STRATEGIC COOPERATION AGREEMENT WITH SAMSUNG MOBILE DISPLAY "NOVALED has sign a licensing and purchase agreement with Samsung Mobile Display. As part of the agreement, SMD has committed to purchase dopant materials used in the transport layers of its AMOLED display modules from Novaled for several years. In addition, Novaled will provide its proprietary PIN OLED® technology to SMD for use in the production of SMD’s AMOLED display modules. Novaled has developed several doping and transport materials that can be used in OLEDs to further enhance the advantanges of Novaled’s PIN OLED® technology. As a result, these OLEDs have very low driving voltage and high substrate compatibility, while maintaining high power efficiency and long lifetime. “Novaled materials are designed to deliver customer benefits, especially for mass-produced devices. Our latest agreement with SMD is further proof of our strong position in the research and development of OLED technologies and materials designed to enhance the performance of OLED products,” said Gildas Sorin, CEO of Novaled. “It also confirms our strategy to build successful and long-lasting business relationships with leading OLED display and lighting manufacturers.”" via OLED-Display

Rockwell Collins and Boeing to Bring New Flight Deck to 757/767 Aircraft "The all-new 757 and 767 flight deck features the following technologies:

-- Comprehensive electronic flight instrument and engine indicating crew alerting advanced flight display system featuring three large-format, landscape displays which provide significantly higher levels of situational awareness and reliability. Each display provides two independently controlled display windows to replace six cathode ray tube displays and numerous analog instruments.

-- Advanced NextGen communication and surveillance systems - with optimized viewing on the advanced displays -- provisions for future airspace modernization around the globe, including ADS-B In applications, controller-pilot datalink, airport taxi maps, and surface guidance.

-- Additionally, Rockwell Collins will offer an Integrated Head-up Guidance System (HGS(TM)) with future SVS capability for improved situation awareness, more efficient operations through all phases of flight, including departures and approaches in low-visibility conditions, thunderstorm diversion, and quick, at-a-glance flight path monitoring." via MarketWatch