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Hello MEMS, Goodbye Monitors

Posted by michael on from the l999 dept.

ftantil writes "In this article Bob Cringely says traditional monitors (CRTs *and* LCDs) will eventually go the way of the Underwood. I've always liked the idea of seeing the image equivalent of a 27" monitor by looking into a slot in my cellphone, but it never occurred to me that these things could replace TVs too."

7 of 268 comments (clear)

  1. More details by Triskaidekaphobia · · Score: 5, Informative

    Some better descriptions of how MEMS display work here and here (flash based, but very good)

  2. I would assume that he is partially correct by drinkypoo · · Score: 5, Insightful
    However, LCDs are getting cheaper, and OLEDs are on the horizon. I don't want an empty box, I don't want a box at all. I want a thin panel which I can put on a wall.

    Optimally we would get something that comes in rolls and can be cut to size. Then you just stick a piece of fiber on it anywhere, and have it communicate with you optically. Every pixel should have its own driver circuit, and they should speak to one another with various shortcut buses woven throughout the material. It should also be capable of speaking to other pieces of the material if you make it overlap. This way we could have large (if initially slow) displays. Then you just need a discovery method to determine the properties of the display, and a resolution-independent display method.

    In the meantime; I don't want an empty box. If I have a MEMS-based display, it had better be painting the image directly onto my retina, which is much more useful anyway. I'm willing to put on goggles, though that shouldn't be necessary; within a certain (smallish) range of motion it should be able to track me just fine.

    If we DO use a MEMS mirror-based display, we should be using a large number of mirrors to minimize the depth of the thing and also to maximize refresh rates.

    --
    "You're right," Fisheye says. "I should have set it on 'whip' or 'chop.'"
  3. Who needs LSD? by heretic108 · · Score: 5, Interesting

    "Turn on, JACK IN, drop out!"
    -- ghost of Timothy Leary

    --
    -- In the beginning was the WORD, and the WORD was UNSIGNED, and the main(){} was without form and void...
    1. Re:Who needs LSD? by Angst+Badger · · Score: 5, Funny

      Spoken like someone who's never done LSD. If I had to choose, acid beats Fractint hands down, even if it's Fractint projected onto my retina with anti-aliased subsampling, real-time zoom, and the appearance of an 84-inch display. Until there are some major advances in graphics technology, no PC can produce the impression of a five-dimensional alien entity simultaneous receding into the past and accelerating into the future while interpenetrating all possible points in the universe at the speed of light accompanied by a soundtrack based on the contents of my subconscious mind.

      Now, Fractint with acid -- that's the best of both worlds.

      --
      Proud member of the Weirdo-American community.
  4. Privacy aspect by Graspee_Leemoor · · Score: 5, Funny

    How come nobody has stated the obvious yet ?

    It's perfect for pr0n!

    Now your boss will have to look at your facial expression to see if you're working or not; good poker players need never work again!

    graspee

    1. Re:Privacy aspect by PacoTaco · · Score: 5, Funny
      Now your boss will have to look at your facial expression to see if you're working or not

      Well, your boss could always look elsewhere...

  5. Re:And the #1 reason why MEMS will become popular. by PacoTaco · · Score: 5, Funny
    Now every pair of eyeballs can be individually billed.

    If that's successful, the MPAA will introduce legislation that requires you to pay per eyeball. "We don't want to overcharge one-eyed consumers," says the press release.