E-Ink tablet with full motion video and color?

Charybdis · 06-13-2011, 06:59 AM

Hi,

here is the list of my requirements, when can I buy such a tablet?

10" display
Full featured (Android or Ubuntu) tablet, which can run regular applications
But has E-Ink color display
And the refresh rate is so good that it can display full motion video

Full motion video is already possible with E-Ink: http://www.engadget.com/2011/02/16/b...display-video/

But it is a prototype only.

And the latest E-Ink displays have 4096 colors.

When will someone combine the two, and make a color E-Ink display with fast refresh rate, so that it can display videos?

I heard that Amazon is working on a tablet which would use E-Ink, maybe that device could do the above things?

ardeegee · 06-13-2011, 07:21 AM

I'd guess 3 years.

Zetmolm · 06-13-2011, 08:51 AM

Never. By the time tablets can do all that E Ink is obsolete and you'll have other (even better) display technologies. Three years might be a good guess for that.

Charybdis · 06-13-2011, 08:56 AM

But what about the rumored Amazon tablet, which would use E-Ink?

HarryT · 06-13-2011, 09:32 AM

If Amazon releases a tablet in the next year, it won't be eInk.

lestatar · 06-13-2011, 10:08 AM

I pretty much agree with the crowd. eInk while fine for now, IMO has a definite "shelf life" and the digital clock is ticking. Tech advancements are happening so fast I am totally with Zetmolm on this.

That link is cool, but like someone commented, you still have the issue of backlighting to contend with, among others. So I kinda think that a major leap forward in eInk tech is less likely than one for the more visually compelling LCD camp.

But ya never know right? Ain't tech great?

ucfgrad93 · 06-13-2011, 10:13 AM

I have to agree with the rest, it is very doubtful you'll ever see something like the OP described.

Charybdis · 06-13-2011, 04:30 PM

Ok then when will E-Ink make a monochrome screen with much faster refresh rate, to display full motion video? This is already possible, watch the video by Bookeen.

I want an "ebook reader" I can browse the web, compose documents, read and write emails, watch Youtube videos with.

I know about Pixel Qi, but E-Ink has better image. Not to mention that only 2 products use Pixel Qi.

Mirasol displays - they are far from mass production.

Zetmolm · 06-13-2011, 06:03 PM

Again, never. Technically they may be able to do it, but there is probably no market for it - except you of course. The huge (expensive!) processor that's needed plus the constant screen refreshing would reduce battery life to hours rather than days or weeks.

A rough estimate:
The video you linked to shows what they call 'full-motion video' on only a quarter of a 6" E Ink display. I estimate they use some 5 square inches. That allegedly gives a battery life that is similar to non backlit LCD, which I think is 10-20 hours. If you want to have full-motion video on all of a 10" display, the area that needs to be refreshed constantly is almost 10x as large. So battery life would be reduced to 1-2 hours.

delphin · 06-14-2011, 08:03 AM

The only real way to achieve this within the current technology is with a dual screen 'flippy tablet' with a standard backlit TFT LCD screen on one side and a eInk screen on the other.

I thought of this one day when I picked up my Sony PRS-650, which has a Proporta folio style cover, and opened the cover wrong-way-round, so I was looking at the back of the reader.

The proporta folio style cover has both front and back covers, with the reader connected at the spine like the pages of a standard book, so it can be opened either from the front cover or back cover equally easily.

This made me think - 'What if you had screens on BOTH sides, and used the magnets in the front and back covers (the ones that Sony typically uses only to hold the covers closed) with Hall effect sensors in the reader, so it could sense which way the ebook had been opened to automatically activate the appropriate screen.

It's easy to keep the standard arrangement of having the spine of the book on the left side, by the simple expedient of having the screen image on the rear side inverted from the one on the front.

The cover sensing magnets could also be used to put the reader in standby power saving mode automatically when both covers are closed, so there are other advantages to this scheme, but for those that prefer their tablet without covers, flipping around screen images with an onboard gyro-orientation sensor is pretty standard stuff for tablets, so that is another alternative.

So, what you would have would be a nicely bound book that you open from one cover to access the TFT LCD side for reading indoors in dim light (or for multimedia), or from the opposite cover, reveling the eInk screen, for reading outdoors.

Not quite two eBook readers for the price of one, because that extra screen would add a little to the cost, but the CPU, Memory, and other electronics could be used to drive both screens, so there are some significant savings vs. having two completely separate devices.

Kind of the new-age techno-equivalent of the old 'ACE Doubles' SF Paperbacks.

witeowl · 06-14-2011, 11:01 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by delphin

The only real way to achieve this within the current technology is with a dual screen 'flippy tablet' with a standard backlit TFT LCD screen on one side and a eInk screen on the other.

I thought of this one day when I picked up my Sony PRS-650, which has a Proporta folio style cover, and opened the cover wrong-way-round, so I was looking at the back of the reader.

The proporta folio style cover has both front and back covers, with the reader connected at the spine like the pages of a standard book, so it can be opened either from the front cover or back cover equally easily.

This made me think - 'What if you had screens on BOTH sides, and used the magnets in the front and back covers (the ones that Sony typically uses only to hold the covers closed) with Hall effect sensors in the reader, so it could sense which way the ebook had been opened to automatically activate the appropriate screen.

That's actually an outstanding idea. I mean... beyond outstanding... I'd have the backlit for reading in dim (and dark) rooms... I'd have the eInk for outdoors and bright light...

Seriously, I'd sell my first-born child for that.

Charybdis · 06-22-2011, 03:10 PM

But if people buy ebook readers for reading books, then they need something similar for writing, browsing the web and watching videos.

E-Ink is good for the eyes, and the battery life is great.

If E-Ink could drastically improve the refresh rate, that would be fantastic.

Would you use your ebook reader for browsing the web, watching videos and writing documents? Of course you would. But you cannot, since the refresh rate sucks.

jocampo · 06-23-2011, 10:23 PM

eink has been so good and nice because was implemented , mostly , for ebooks. And you don't need color to read novels or classics.

So why implement or force color on something that by design, does not have a high refresh rate? I think is easier to reduce glare on existing LCD screens instead of producing eink color devices.

I don't want an ereader to browse Internet, check Facebook, tweet, emails, make phone calls and who knows what else ... give me a reading tool only, an eink device ... and that's it ...

Namekuseijin · 06-24-2011, 02:55 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Charybdis

E-Ink is good for the eyes, and the battery life is great.

If E-Ink could drastically improve the refresh rate, that would be fantastic.

Would you use your ebook reader for browsing the web, watching videos and writing documents? Of course you would. But you cannot, since the refresh rate sucks.

E Ink is made for reading: reading is a slow activity, it is what saves your battery life, not the technology itself. You read a page, you turn it: one charge spent. Were refresh rate good enough for video, it'd mean E Ink would do exactly the same as LCD: 30 refreshes per second. Your battery will run down as fast.

One can't please both greeks and trojans. One prefers E Ink to display static content, the other prefers LCD for fast-paced interactive stuff. Best of both worlds.

06-13-2011, 06:59 AM	#1
Charybdis Enthusiast Posts: 29 Karma: 607 Join Date: Jul 2008 Location: Budapest, Hungary Device: BeBook	E-Ink tablet with full motion video and color? Hi, here is the list of my requirements, when can I buy such a tablet? 10" display Full featured (Android or Ubuntu) tablet, which can run regular applications But has E-Ink color display And the refresh rate is so good that it can display full motion video Full motion video is already possible with E-Ink: http://www.engadget.com/2011/02/16/b...display-video/ But it is a prototype only. And the latest E-Ink displays have 4096 colors. When will someone combine the two, and make a color E-Ink display with fast refresh rate, so that it can display videos? I heard that Amazon is working on a tablet which would use E-Ink, maybe that device could do the above things?

06-13-2011, 10:08 AM	#6
lestatar LB's lolz Mutt Minion Posts: 2,902 Karma: 5700001 Join Date: Jun 2011 Location: Hong Kong now but NYC forever Device: Kindle3, GalaxyTab, BB Bold9700, BB 8300, Sony Clie, Palm Vx, Palm III	I pretty much agree with the crowd. eInk while fine for now, IMO has a definite "shelf life" and the digital clock is ticking. Tech advancements are happening so fast I am totally with Zetmolm on this. That link is cool, but like someone commented, you still have the issue of backlighting to contend with, among others. So I kinda think that a major leap forward in eInk tech is less likely than one for the more visually compelling LCD camp. But ya never know right? Ain't tech great? Last edited by lestatar; 06-13-2011 at 10:13 AM.

06-14-2011, 08:03 AM	#10
delphin Evangelist Posts: 434 Karma: 346901 Join Date: Dec 2010 Device: SONY PRS-650	The only real way to achieve this within the current technology is with a dual screen 'flippy tablet' with a standard backlit TFT LCD screen on one side and a eInk screen on the other. I thought of this one day when I picked up my Sony PRS-650, which has a Proporta folio style cover, and opened the cover wrong-way-round, so I was looking at the back of the reader. The proporta folio style cover has both front and back covers, with the reader connected at the spine like the pages of a standard book, so it can be opened either from the front cover or back cover equally easily. This made me think - 'What if you had screens on BOTH sides, and used the magnets in the front and back covers (the ones that Sony typically uses only to hold the covers closed) with Hall effect sensors in the reader, so it could sense which way the ebook had been opened to automatically activate the appropriate screen. It's easy to keep the standard arrangement of having the spine of the book on the left side, by the simple expedient of having the screen image on the rear side inverted from the one on the front. The cover sensing magnets could also be used to put the reader in standby power saving mode automatically when both covers are closed, so there are other advantages to this scheme, but for those that prefer their tablet without covers, flipping around screen images with an onboard gyro-orientation sensor is pretty standard stuff for tablets, so that is another alternative. So, what you would have would be a nicely bound book that you open from one cover to access the TFT LCD side for reading indoors in dim light (or for multimedia), or from the opposite cover, reveling the eInk screen, for reading outdoors. Not quite two eBook readers for the price of one, because that extra screen would add a little to the cost, but the CPU, Memory, and other electronics could be used to drive both screens, so there are some significant savings vs. having two completely separate devices. Kind of the new-age techno-equivalent of the old 'ACE Doubles' SF Paperbacks. Last edited by delphin; 06-14-2011 at 07:48 PM.

Similar Threads
Thread	Thread Starter	Forum	Replies	Last Post
new sub-$1000 Tablet PC due out this year from Motion Computing	sarah11918	enTourage Archive	28	03-28-2011 01:46 PM
$99 concept NoteSlate tablet does electronic ink in color, but only one at a time	DonaldL.	News	33	02-28-2011 10:01 AM
NOOK Color is a Tablet PC not a colored E-Ink Rreader!	meem	News	133	11-02-2010 04:47 PM
Ended Motion LE1600 Tablet	Loopy65	Flea Market	0	11-21-2007 04:40 AM
Video of full color E Ink display in action	Alexander Turcic	News	13	08-22-2007 11:43 AM

06-13-2011, 07:21 AM	#2
ardeegee Maratus speciosus butt Posts: 3,292 Karma: 1162698 Join Date: Sep 2009 Device: PRS-350	I'd guess 3 years.

06-13-2011, 08:51 AM	#3
Zetmolm Guru Posts: 612 Karma: 2031728 Join Date: Jan 2010 Device: PocketBook Touch (622), PocketBook Touch Lux 2, Pocketbook Touch HD 3	Never. By the time tablets can do all that E Ink is obsolete and you'll have other (even better) display technologies. Three years might be a good guess for that.

06-13-2011, 08:56 AM	#4
Charybdis Enthusiast Posts: 29 Karma: 607 Join Date: Jul 2008 Location: Budapest, Hungary Device: BeBook	But what about the rumored Amazon tablet, which would use E-Ink?

06-13-2011, 09:32 AM	#5
HarryT eBook Enthusiast Posts: 85,544 Karma: 93383043 Join Date: Nov 2006 Location: UK Device: Kindle Oasis 2, iPad Pro 10.5", iPhone 6	If Amazon releases a tablet in the next year, it won't be eInk.

06-13-2011, 10:13 AM	#7
ucfgrad93 Wizard Posts: 2,360 Karma: 9026681 Join Date: Jun 2011 Location: Colorado Device: Kindle Paperwhite 2nd Gen	I have to agree with the rest, it is very doubtful you'll ever see something like the OP described.

06-13-2011, 04:30 PM	#8
Charybdis Enthusiast Posts: 29 Karma: 607 Join Date: Jul 2008 Location: Budapest, Hungary Device: BeBook	Ok then when will E-Ink make a monochrome screen with much faster refresh rate, to display full motion video? This is already possible, watch the video by Bookeen. I want an "ebook reader" I can browse the web, compose documents, read and write emails, watch Youtube videos with. I know about Pixel Qi, but E-Ink has better image. Not to mention that only 2 products use Pixel Qi. Mirasol displays - they are far from mass production.

06-13-2011, 06:03 PM	#9
Zetmolm Guru Posts: 612 Karma: 2031728 Join Date: Jan 2010 Device: PocketBook Touch (622), PocketBook Touch Lux 2, Pocketbook Touch HD 3	Again, never. Technically they may be able to do it, but there is probably no market for it - except you of course. The huge (expensive!) processor that's needed plus the constant screen refreshing would reduce battery life to hours rather than days or weeks. A rough estimate: The video you linked to shows what they call 'full-motion video' on only a quarter of a 6" E Ink display. I estimate they use some 5 square inches. That allegedly gives a battery life that is similar to non backlit LCD, which I think is 10-20 hours. If you want to have full-motion video on all of a 10" display, the area that needs to be refreshed constantly is almost 10x as large. So battery life would be reduced to 1-2 hours.

06-22-2011, 03:10 PM	#12
Charybdis Enthusiast Posts: 29 Karma: 607 Join Date: Jul 2008 Location: Budapest, Hungary Device: BeBook	But if people buy ebook readers for reading books, then they need something similar for writing, browsing the web and watching videos. E-Ink is good for the eyes, and the battery life is great. If E-Ink could drastically improve the refresh rate, that would be fantastic. Would you use your ebook reader for browsing the web, watching videos and writing documents? Of course you would. But you cannot, since the refresh rate sucks.

06-23-2011, 10:23 PM	#13
jocampo Layback feline Posts: 3,034 Karma: 6980745 Join Date: Nov 2010 Location: USA Device: Oasis 2nd gen, Sony DPTS1, iPad Pro 10.5"	eink has been so good and nice because was implemented , mostly , for ebooks. And you don't need color to read novels or classics. So why implement or force color on something that by design, does not have a high refresh rate? I think is easier to reduce glare on existing LCD screens instead of producing eink color devices. I don't want an ereader to browse Internet, check Facebook, tweet, emails, make phone calls and who knows what else ... give me a reading tool only, an eink device ... and that's it ...

Advert

Advert