Startup Ray Display plans to launch a pico projector next month for $249, a company representative said Thursday, which it claims will be $100 less than the cheapest pico projectors already on the market.
Unfortunately, that last claim isn't currently true, as a quick check of Amazon.com turned up at least one pocket projector that's priced at $260, and several micro projectors (linked from the page) that are even cheaper. In fact, I'd refer you to this superb roundup of miniprojectors compiled by TechSaver guru Jennifer DeLeo, which contains links, among others, to PCMag.com's Editor's Choice, the Dell M109S, which is currently priced at $299.
However, the Ray representative said that the compact projector will go on sale in mid-September, so the company has some time to adjust its pricing strategy. And, for right now, the price Ray is talking about is indeed cheaper than most. And yes, the little tyke that appears to the left is indeed featured throughout the company's Web site.
We don't know much about the specs yet, but Ray has confirmed that it will offer 640 x 480 resolution with a throw distance up to 70 inches, and the company's Web site confirms that it includes a super-efficient LED light bulb rated for 20,000 hours of use.
Now this is a hard-working monitor. EVGA has just introduced the InterView 1700, a dual-display that lets you do more. The InterView offers two 17-inch flat screen, each with a 1440x900 pixel resolution. They're both attached to a single center stand that contains a 1.3megapixel webcam. The base includes the monitor controls, as well as three USB 2.0 ports.
Here's where it gets fun: the displays can each swivel vertically, so you can view both from a comfortable angle, or arrange one for a friend to view. The monitors can run in clone mode, where both screens show the same thing, or span mode (pictured), where they produce one continuous desktop.
But there's more: the screens can also swivel vertically, so you can show your work to someone sitting on the other side of your desk. The image automatically rotates when a screen is flipped. Two people sharing a desk area can each use one of the screens, thereby saving space.
It's a beautifully versatile system, easy to configure as needed. The company is pitching it to business users, but I'm betting plenty of home users will also want one. The InterView 1700 is available from the company for $649.99.
In the "cool but totally unnecessary" category, we have the $8,000 NEC
CRV43, a widescreen display that curves around the user. And when NEC
says widescreen, they mean wide. With 2880-by-900
resolution, this display has an aspect ratio of 32:10, as opposed to
the standard widescreen 16:9.
The company has targeted this display at
a variety of high-end markets, including graphics, simulation, and
finance--but with its claimed response time of 0.02 ms, I wouldn't expect
anything outside of the most intense PC gaming experience ever from
this beast of a monitor. Regardless of the user, the CRV43 would offer
a decidedly different experience (and cost) than anything else on the
market.
"The NEC CRV43 curved display provides an excitingly immersive viewing
experience for any type of user," said Keith Yanke, Director of Product
Marketing for NEC Display Solutions.
NEC said the ultra-wide screen would eliminate the distractions of
having a multi-monitor setup, with gaps between screens infringing on
productivity. The display also contains USB 2.0 ports, as well as HDMI
and DVI-D connectivity. Despite the LCD-esque appearance, it is widelyreported that the CRV43 is actually a LED-backlit DLP display.
No matter the technology, gamer bragging rights certainly don't
come cheap.
With today's inexpensive monitors (like the one highlighted in today's Cheap Geek post), multiple monitor configurations are within everyone's grasp. If you'd like more viewing room but your computer lacks the ports, check out the USB 2.0 Display Adapter just released by Other World Computing.
This $99 adapter turns any USB 2.0 port into a DVI port. It works like an external video card, so you don't need to install an upgraded video card into your computer. The adapter works with HDMI, DVI, and VGA displays in full 32-bit color at resolutions up to 1600 by1200.
You can even use more than one of these: Intel Macs can support up to four adapters, while Windows XP SP2, 2000 SP4, and Vista with Aero computers can support up to six.
Epson, along with partners Impressx and Engage, has
unveiled a multi-touch screen interactive desktop at the UK's Gadget Show Live, according to Vnunet.com. The 52-inch X-Desk uses projectors--a natural fit for Epson, who sells a ton of the things--to transform a surface into an interactive display. The idea is to "[blur] the lines between the physical
and virtual worlds, allowing people to physically interact with digital content
such as photos, videos, documents, maps and information," according to the company.
Here's how it works: place an MP3 player, a cell phone, or other device on the surface, and the X-Desk gives you immediate access to whatever media is contained in the device. Users can also move media around on the surface. The report said that the system consists of a rear-projection screen, a camera, a PC with custom software, optical sensors that register and interpret touches on the
surface, and an Epson 3LCD projector. No word yet if the company plans to produce the X-Desk, but it probably won't be any time soon.
In his recent review of the Lenovo ThinkPad W700, Cisco Cheng noted that this high-end portable workstation for photographers and artists would soon be available with an optional secondary display to complement its 17-inch, 1,920 by 1,200 screen. The idea is to relegate lower-end tasks like reading e-mail, word processing, and Web surfing to the smaller screen, leaving the full 17 inches of the primary screen free for photo or art editing.
The dual-screen version, the W700ds, has arrived in our labs, and I took it out for a spin. It works as intended, and many professionals in its target audience may find it worth it to plunk down the 400+ bucks for this novel option.
LG Display, Sharp, and Chunghwa Picture Tubes have agreed to plead guilty and pay $585 million in fines for their role in an LCD panel price-fixing scheme, the Department of Justice announced Wednesday.
LG will be responsible for $400 million of that fine, the second highest criminal fine ever imposed by the department's antitrust division, DOJ said.
South Korea-based LG Display Co. and its California subsidiary LG Display America pleaded guilty to participating in a conspiracy between September 2001 and June 2006 to fix the price of thin-film transistor (TFT) LCD panels used in computer monitors and notebooks, TVs, mobile phones, and other electronic devices.
Chunghwa, a Taiwanese company, will hand over $65 million for conspiring with LG and another unnamed co-conspirator between September 2001 and December 2006.
Japan-based Sharp will pay $120 million for a separate conspiracy to fix the price of TFT-LCD panels sold to: Dell from April 2001 to December 2006 for use in its desktops and laptops; Motorola between 2005 and 2006 for use in its Razr mobile phones; and Apple Computer from September 2005 to December 2006 for iPod screens.
In Korea, Samsung presented the 23-inch 2342BWX LCD monitor to the public that boasts QWXGA resolution. It still maintains the same 16:9 aspect ratio found in many displays nowadays, but rather than the more common 1920x1080 resolution, Samsung 2342BWX has 2048x1152. This causes fonts and displays to be rather small, but the 23-inch screen can then fit a couple of A4-sized or letter-sized documents side-by-side even if you use a side bar (say, Windows Vista's).
Samsung is apparently targeting people who have a need for more than one monitor, hoping that this one caters to their needs better and eliminate the need for a second display. The Samsung 2342BWX LCD has thin black bezel, 20,000:1 dynamic contrast ratio, and a 5-millisecond response time. It will be available soon in South Korea (later internationally) for around $315.
Among the dozens of new OLED displays presented during the FPD International 2008 in Japan is Sharp's new LCD panel with built-in memory. The memory enables the LCD panel to retain its display even when the power source is cut off; sort of like an e-paper. One of the differences is that, while the e-paper is generally considered a low-power technology, this one requires "relatively large" energy to save content in its memory. Unfortunately, the underlying principles of this LCD were not revealed during the event. What we know though, is that Sharp showcased both monochrome and 8-color LCD display panels in various sizes (1.7, 2.4, 6.1 and 14.1).
A physical limitation comes in the form of temperature - the LCD panels can only work within the range of -25 to +55 degrees Celsius. Anything above 55 degrees would distort the display while anything below -25 would make it difficult to form the image on screen. Another limitation is the manufacturing costs which, for now, remain a "bit expensive" due to the usage of some materials not found in conventional LCDs. If and when ready for mass production though, Sharp claims the company's old-generation manufacturing lines can be used, so the manufacturing costs will be about equivalent to current LCD panels.
It has been the rule since we first put electrons to work for us--the price of electronics will fall. So when I tell you TV and monitor prices are about fall again you shouldn't be surprised. However, I smiled broadly when I read the headline in Eric Taub's NY Times Bits blog: "TV Prices Falling Faster," because there's no better adjective to place next to "falling" than "faster!"
For what LG Display claims is the first time in the industry, an RGB LED-backlit LCD monitor has begun mass production. The 17.1-inch LCD for notebook PCs uses three LED lamp colors--red, green, and blue--and has a color reproduction rate of 105 percent. According to LG, compared to conventional CCFL monitors, the LCD display in question can deliver 30 percent higher contrast ratio and 40 percent more color.
What's keeping the technology from being mass produced are "technical difficulties" regarding the process. Now that it's lined up for release, it'll benefit gamers and graphic designers greatly, even us, who are neither of the two, who just want to see stunning colors on our monitors. Hope it doesn't disappoint.
For graphic artists, CAD/CAM pros, animators and others for whom size matters, the 30-inch NEC MultiSync LCD3090WQXi desktop LCD monitor may be just the ticket. The 4-megapixel (2560 x 1600 or WQXGA) display provides 102% color gamut relative to NTSC and 97.8% of the Adobe RGB color space, NEC says. It also employs HDCP (High Bandwidth Digital Content Protection) through its DVI-D connector (there's second DVI-I jack), allowing users to play encrypted content - meaning that even if NEC targets the graphics professional, it hasn't forgotten the gamer with the deep pockets and wide open desktop. As the MultiSync name implies, the LCD3090WQXi syncs up with non-native resolutions and scale them to full-screen. Price is $2,200.
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It has been the rule since we first put electrons to work for us--the price of electronics will fall. So when I tell you TV and monitor prices are about fall again you shouldn't be surprised. However, I smiled broadly when I read the headline in Eric Taub's NY Times Bits blog: "
