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Way back in 2005, Samsung technically showed off a 40-inch OLED screen. We didn't want to be rude and say anything at the time, but it wasn't sporting HD resolution and the contrast ratio was a measly 5,000:1. Now Samsung is showing off their new 40-inch OLED (that's a mere 8.9mm thick), and needless to say, its specs are more than a little worth our attention.
If you're possessed of some serious disposable income, electrical engineering chops, mountains of free time and a passion for open source and vintage gaming, you might be the kind of person who would want to buy the GamePack. For about $US250, Liquidware will send you a full build kit for his open source Game Boy killer tribute. Unfortunately, the "Game" part will be up to you — the Arduino-based handheld has only been tested running very basic code. These points aside, the specs are impressive, with an OLED screen, Lithium Ion battery, and built-in rumble capability — not to mention that fact that it'll fill the gap in your nerdbelt between your NES buckle and your OpenMoko Neo Freerunner quite nicely. [Liquidware via Technabob]
Aside from allowing for ridiculous contrast ratios and eye-exploding colour saturation, OLEDs can also be thin enough to be flexible, as Sony is demonstrating here with this crazy 0.3-millimeter-thick concept display at CEATEC. We've seen flexible OLED screens before, but 11-inches is a significant step forward. What's in store when this concept moves into reality? Wearable TV jackets? Flexible laptop screens? TV blankets? Boggling.
Now, we've been raving about Sony's diminutive XEL-1 OLED TV for a while, but an independent investigation by Displaysearch is casting doubt on the screen's lifespan. They ran two XEL-1 units for 1000 hours, then measured the change in brightness emitted by the screen. They concluded that it would take 17,000 hours for the screen to lose half its brightness—a usual measure of display life. That sounds like a lot—it's 5.8 years, at 8 hours use every day—but it's actually close to half the 30,000 hours claimed by Sony. Sony, of course, is defending their figure, saying it's based on years of experimentation. Sounds like bad news, though of course when larger OLEDs hit soon they'll have newer tech inside. [Displaysearch via OLED-display]
There's something about the idea of cramming a mobile phone into a wristwatch that keeps the designs rolling out, but is this the first one with a touch of style? Possibly, with that metal case and strap, and looking not too horrifically fat to wear. The EP2502 even has a 1.3-inch OLED touchscreen, a 2-megapixel camera, tri-band and Bluetooth support and claims to be shockproof. It's also supposedly the World's first waterproof mobile phone, though we don't know to what waterproofing standard.
Nokia has fired out three new mobile phones aimed at the European market, under a "beautiful to use" banner. Most interesting, the 6600 comes in either a fold or slide version, both with "tap" touch control technology. The 3G folding version has a 2 megapixel camera and 2.13-inch OLED screen, while the slide version has 3.2 megapixel camera and 2.3-inch screen. The coloured sliding 3600 model has the same 3.2 megapixel camera and is the first from Nokia with "background noise cancellation." They'll be available at the end of the year, the 6600 fold around $470, the slide at $430 and the 3600 at $300. [Nokia]
In a end-of-article one-liner afterthought, Digitimes noted that Panasonic will begin making OLED TVs "in the future." They'll join Samsung (2009) and LG (2011) in jumping off the current LCD and Plasma train, which is an increasingly competitive (read: lower margin) market. [Digitimes]
Samsung SDI has just made a bold assertion about OLED technology: TVs and monitors will be using the tech just next year, and it will be in flexible displays by 2010. And Samsung's putting its money where its mouth is by doubling Active Matrix OLED production capacity from 1.5 to 3 million panels per year by 2009. At that point economies of scale kick in, so the plan is production doubling again by 2010. There're a couple of hurdles to overcome, though: high power consumption is a big challenge. And with giants like Sony and Sharp getting into bed with each other for LCD production, the competition is going to be interesting. [Digitimes]
Sony's 11-inch, 3mm-thick XEL-1 OLED TV is OK, I guess. But sometimes I worry that it's just too thick. I mean, 3mm? Come on, Sony. Who do you think you're dealing with here? Luckily, it looks like Sony is working on a new 11-inch OLED, one that's 10 times thinner than its expensive predecessor.
While Samsung seems a tad wishy-washy about exactly 