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Collapsible LCD Screens
Schart writes "I can't seem to find any pictures of exactly what they mean by 'collapsible LCD,' but NEC today announced a new line of low(ish) priced LCD screens that 'fold up for easy portability.'" Anyone out there who can supply visual documentation?
this is exactly what the world's been looking for.... we want smaller devices BUT larger displays. this'll be great.
Now I can fold up my porn and put it my pocket!
whats the point in having a folding lcd monitor? it's not like portability is a huge factor when you still have to plug it into your computer
Excuse me while I go take a picture of an LCD falling on my head. Then you'll have one of a 'Collapsible LCD' :)
Great post. I will "fold" it and keep it for later, ok?
-- Eduardo B. Fonseca
Folding LCD + NLX case = portable gaming computer for LAN parties, RV'ing, etc.
Okay... if I want a portable screen, I'll buy a laptop.
Sure the screens come in 17 inches... but come on, I don't know why portable screens would be so helpful.
Somebody give me some actual uses... I just can't think of any that a laptop wouldn't do just as well.
The only thing I can think of would be nice to display a powerpoint presentation from my PDA -- however, a laptop would still do better.
Anyway, I think it's cool. Just give me some reasons.
Davak
Several years ago (circa 1995 if my memory serves me right) IBM produced a regular-sized notebook which had a full-sized keyboard. This "butterfly" keyboard was the closest anyone has ever come to producing a desktop-type experience in a notebook package but the screen was still no better than that on any other notebook.
Now, with these foldable screens, we'll finally see ultra-ultra portable notebooks with 15in. dispays and usable keyboards in smaller packages than currently possible.
Of course, it'll be a long time until these babies are anything but top-of-the-line models but, eventually, they'll be available at the lower-end of the market too.
I can't wait to see one.
"Accept that some days you are the pigeon, and some days you are the statue." - David Brent, Wernham Hogg
Can't find a photo of it yet, but the article says "The seam between the two panels is less than 1 mm"
http://www.etechkorea.info/articles/20020501001.ph p
Don't know if this constitutes what everyone is looking for, but you can see that there is no border in the center portion where it folds.
Well and good if you can fold the LCD monitor, but what's the use if you can't fold the the CPU!
Will sys-admin for food
What I want is a PDA with the form factor of a palm, that I can attach a portable screen for more real estate - like if I want to look at a manual or book with diagrams.
The killer app for ebooks and PDA's could well be reference material.
"There is more worth loving than we have strength to love." - Brian Jay Stanley
yup. they ship the monitor in the standard 3x7 envelope too. pay 35 cents for shipping and handeling.
Consensus is good, but informed dictatorship is better
I was reading an article that was given a link by another poster - http://www.samsungsdi.co.kr/sdi_en/news/news_view. jsp?page=3&no=775&type=null&searchtext=nul l - and it would seem that this is intended to be more along the lines of an e-book reader, as opposed to a new pda or a new style of laptop. Personally, I see this as a great leap forward for e-books, which i have had a fair amount of interest in from their inception a few years ago. I think it would be really great if i could go back with serial numbers from all of the hard copies of books that i have and get e-book versions of them, which would allow me to take more than a half-dozen paper backs with me whenever i travel or go TDY. Can't wait to see where this tech goes from here.
I have no regrets, this is the only path.
My whole life has been "UNLIMITED BLADE WORKS"
Comment removed based on user account deletion
The center is so important in games -- it's where my Diablo II character always is. I'd prefer two half-sized peices either side than a fold in the middle
http://www.nmv.co.jp/nmvisual/hardware/index.html It looks like the base and cord are detachable. Japanese products usually first come out in Japan. That's a good place to start...
Forgive my scepticism, but looking at the picture this seems awfully similar to two adjacent screens.
Vino, gyno, and techno -Bruce Sterling
you could take say quake3 bend the screen a bit and up the fov that way when you look to the left you see guys that are to the left of you, without so much distortion from just uping the fov on a flat screen
Scientific and technological advances are just distraction by evil doers from our real duty in life.
We should all be working the fields of our feudal lord not sitting at home programming on these new fangled porn propogators.
Agrarian theocracy was how god intended us to live. I say we go back to being serfs and peasants so we can remain in gods good grace!
I like the idea. Some may think "well, it's 13lbs, that's not so portable" But you have to look at it this way. Whether you haul your system to and from LAN's every week, or even move it from location to location once a year, it's common knowledge that if you can the make the package smaller, it won't get harmed as easily. Even with current day LCD's, the worry of scratching the screen, or something else, makes people put them in a box, which takes up room, and is a general pain in the ass. If you can fold it up, especially so that the entire screen is enclosed, what the hell, put the monitor in your glove box and save room in the moving vehicle for other stuff (like that abnormally large chair that is just really comfortable and you just CAN'T compute without it)
your sins into me, oh my beautiful one.
Collapsible LCD?
:)
Nintendo had that decades ago with Donkey Kong!
>Anyone out there who can supply visual >documentation? It's in the mail.
-- HG Pennypacker, wealthy industrialist and philanthropist
1980's, Sony: "You'll never notice those two 'faint' grey lines!" 2003, NEC: "You'll never notice those three 'small' spaces between sections!"
Please help metamoderate.
Man, I really want a 3-D blackboard. Life sucks.
What if life is just a side effect of some other process and God has no idea we exist?
Origami, the age old art of paper folding will be applied to nec folding screen techlology.
A few folds... it's a bird
a few folds... it's a horse
a few folds.... it's broken!
"It's just like that 80's toy transformers, only kids can maniplulate it".
How about a clam-shell device that would open up to a full-screen? Double the size.
Or, since it's flexible, why not just have it on your sleeve? You could look down at your sleeve and see what your schedule is for the day (kinda sci-fi, but possible).
Or, in a larger scale, a complete mockup of some new device for demoing.
Or, potentially you could have a book-like device that would allow an old school feel, but be LCD and downloadable and all.
And these are all just off the top of my head, I'm sure there are a ton of applications for this elsewhere than just consumers like the military, hospitals, research etc.
This is my digital signature. 10011011001
This is similar to the Samsung SyncMaster 172T, where the stand and monitor fold together (flat) for wall mounting, easy tote, NEC is just playing catch up, etc.
Doesn't mean the screen folds in half...sorry.
From Toms...
NEC today announced its first line of light-weight LCD monitors that fold up for easy portability. Attractively designed for home users and gamers on the go, the new monitors provide a protective black bezel acrylic screen with flexible silver cabinet and stand that adjust to a variety of angles including flat against its base. "Providing consumers with the freedom to easily carry their monitor around, the new units collapse into small packages that weigh only 8.6 lbs for the NEC LCD1565 and 13.2 lbs for the NEC LCD1765. Built to withstand wear and tear, the durable acrylic screen displays 88 pixels per inch on the 15-inch unit and 96 pixels per inch on the 17-inch unit for continually clear, accurate images even after years of use." Coupled with a small form-factor PC, this looks to be the ideal monitor-type for those that frequently attend LAN parties.
Press release
It really whips the Lama's ass!
Where are those paper displays I keep hearing about. The only redeeming factor in that craporama that was Red Planet was that cool pull out film that was a computer display. Imagine having something like a pen, that you pull a display out of, now that's the real future!
And ... time to bring back those comparisons to George Jetson's collapsible car.
Looks like this is just what is needed to make Sony's flexable pda described in this
New Scientist Article to become practical much sooner.
I've broken too many PDAs from rough pocket treatment. It's about time that this is remedied.
redune.com: The World 3.2 Megapixels at a time
No, but I suggest anyone interested in a nice new flat panel should check out this sexy new 24" LCD Screen from Sun. This takes the place of SGI's old 1600SW for coolest display.
A lot of people seem to think this kind of thing would be useless. However, as a college student who moves a lot I think it would be really nice. The most difficult part of my system to pack and move is my crt. It is heavy, large, and does not fit comfortably and safely little rice burner of a car.
An LCD would be a step up, but they are still larger than they need to be. Every little bit of space makes my move easier and more comfortable. When you think about the fact that I move a considerable portion of my belongings at least at least somewhere in the area of 8 times a year (not counting lan games) a monitor that is very portable makes sense.
Small cases are gaining popularity, portable monitors seem like a logical next step.
Just do a google search on 'foldable lcd'.
This is the first link that turned up: Rackmount Folding LCD Monitors - Folding LCD Monitor
Its like a laptop without a keyboard and CPU - merely a monitor which folds on the base - which is nowhere near as cool as a flexible LCD screen!
Then we could have real scroll bars!
Seems like a lot of companies have invented LCDs that fit in your pocket after turning into vapor.
Donate background CPU time to fight cancer.
This is how it works (I have my sources. Don't question me!):
* You pay your 500 clams
* You take your monitor home and out of the packagaing
* It collapses in on it self, all black-hole-like
The reason there are no photos of it, obviously, is because it isn't human viewable. And now, a word of advice: Stand the fuck back when it collapses 'cos that things has some serious gravitational pull!
This has been a public service announcement. Thankyou.
Dictionary.com:
den ( P ) Pronunciation Key (dn)
n.
1. The shelter or retreat of a wild animal; a lair.
2. A cave or hollow used as a refuge or hiding place.
3. A hidden or squalid dwelling place: a den of thieves.
4. A secluded room for study or relaxation.
5. A unit of about eight to ten Cub Scouts.
Thanks for the link, but that thing is too large and there is no transportable large display. When I say external display I mead something that folds out from the device that's already the size of a Palm V or smaller... I want to be able to use a car manual while out in the garage, or a cookbook in the kitchen without having to have displays everywhere or lug around a bulky display.
My ideal display is actually some sort of slip of ePaper that can be driven from the PDA, and folded away when not in use. Something that folded out to the size of a page in a paperback book would be enough.
"There is more worth loving than we have strength to love." - Brian Jay Stanley
A little off topic, but nice. Thanks, AC.
You had me at "dicks fuck assholes".
... think about it this way ...
...
You have a laptop with a thin, ultra portable 10x12 form factor (ie 15 inch display)... and suddenly you open (unfold) the screen upwards or sideways (maybe both ? like landscape/portrait modes) and end up with a 23.5 inch Screen in a ultra-portable !!
i'd say its sweet
Obviously if you think about it from the desktop point of view its pretty useless, unless you travel with your desktop a lot, like to lan-parties, but that would make it an extremely small market to recoup the r&d.
If you want an opinion... it doesn't look like what I expected. If you want a link (like the guy asked for) here it is: http://www.nmv.co.jp/nmvisual/hardware/index.html
You need to work out more often.
Sure, it's big, but it still fits in a backpack.
--
the strongest word is still the word "free"
I had a foldable LCD screen... that is, until I folded it.
Yup yer right buddy, we shouldn't forget the works of He that created us.
I also on occasion give thanks to the contributions of Ne, Ar, Kr, Xe and RN.
This is where I keep my clever quotes "" Yup I only got a pair, so I better not waste em!
Glad to be of service... Collapsible LCD
It's just an LCD display which is designed to be portable, so the base folds against the screen for easy carrying. It's not like some goddamn collapsing screen that fits in your pocket. Geesh!
Agrarian theocracy? Nah. I told you. We're an anarcho-syndicalist commune. We take it in turns to act as a sort of executive officer for the week, but all the decisions of that officer have to be ratified at a special bi-weekly meeting, by a simple majority in the case of purely internal affairs, but by a two-thirds majority in the case of more major...
Of course whether these target groups will purchase it is another question...
Here's what *I* want a folding screen for... I very much want an all-singing, all-dancing little portable electronic utility that's a phone, a PDA, mp3 player, etc etc etc but that's a really workable form factor for all of the above. I've looked really seriously at the Handspring Treo and like devices, but I do not like the feel of holding that wide thing up to my head when I'm in phone mode.
However, a device that's more phone-shaped, and particularly that is phone-width, just isn't wide enough for an effective PDA screen. Beyond that, I've never been really satisfied with current PDA screens... I'm itching for something that's just a little bigger, maybe 30 - 50% bigger.
With an adequately cool folding screen, you could make something that's phone-shaped but that clamshells sideways to be half as thick and twice as wide when in PDA mode. HEAVEN. This is what I want.
Can't wait...
pants
The (Royal Dutch) Philips company is putting quite some effort into flexible display technology for some years now.
Here the Sales Pitch on their own website. There's not an awfull lot of information, but they do have some nice pics and movies (N.B. Link was broken when I checked; I'm not sure if this is a Mozilla problem or the sites). They really should put more on their websie because they are really doing some cutting edge work there...
So, how long before they make a t-shirt out of this stuff, so I can program what it says?
I object to that article, and to the next reply.
Just like an E:FC Global-Link?o props3.html
http://www.jjambproductions.com/her
With mobile phones getting ever smaller but with more PDA, camera and video features a fold out/roll up screen is just what we need.
It's the size of a phone, you hold it up to your ear, put it in your pocket.
A video call comes in, you extend the screen to 4" and see the other person.
You want to look stuff up on the net, read a map, take a note? Extend the screen to 10" and write on it like a tablet pc. Then fold it up again and stick it in your pocket.
I can't wait
"Taligent is still pure vapor. Maybe they'll be the last who jumps up on Openstep... "
So now when you're in bed, wanting to look at pr0n but worried your mom stepping in... You can fold it so you can see it under your sheets :)
Sure a gap in the middle of your screen is annoying - so why not treat it as two screens (assuming the resolution is decent enough)? Ie, a word processor/ebook reader on one side and a contact manager on the other. Etc.
a world in progress...
âoeWhile moving a desktop monitor has traditionally been a daunting and delicate task for consumers that deterred them from taking the unit out of the home office or den, our advanced technological innovations enable users to quickly fold the monitor up to carry with them on the road or to different rooms in the house.â What about collapsible computers to go with those collapsible monitors to make it easier to take it on the road or move it from room to room easily? Oh, that's right...they have those already. They're called laptops!
The 8.4-inch monochrome Cholesteric LCD praised as an optimal display for e-Book devices.
:(
I'll have to steer clear of that, unfortunately. My doctor says my cholesterol is high enough.
My journal has hot
I guess the commentor did not read the whole article.
For digital images please visit www.necmitsubishi.com/mml.
Of course, I'm still looking for pictures on that site, but that's beyond the point. No pictures of the xx65 series yet.
In any case, for 15-inch NEC LCD1565 at $349 U.S. and 17-inch NEC LCD1765 at $549 U.S., it looks interesting.
Nouvelles de jeux et technologies en français. TC
I don't know if this counts as an "intellectual market", and I sure as hell know it can't beat the mass market, but I for one could use one of those whenever I'm building, fixing, administering or just plain playing around with a barebones PC.
Having to move around monitors to desktops and desktops to monitors can be a major PITA; and no, not everything in the world can be, should be, or will be done remotely in a network that may or may not exist in the first place, much less be set up properly in said box.
I keep an old discarded monitor in my home precisely for those situations, or for when I need a second monitor (or a decent first, for an old laptop). I wouldn't pay 500 bucks for one just yet, but that's because I'm a starving student.
I know for a fact that in many a Sysadmin environment this would save major headaches, hardware and office-space money.
Freedom is the freedom to say 2+2=4, everything else follows...
Weird. How did that partial URL get in the subject line?
My journal has hot
Seems pretty obvious that the screen doesnt fold, just the stand.
Dude, it's called innovation. Just because you can't think of a use for this RIGHT NOW doesn't mean it isn't valid or that it won't be useful tomorrow. That's like saying in 1990 "I'll never fill up a 100MB hard drive!".
If people don't innovate, technology becomes stagnant. Maybe there is, and never will be any viable use for this device. But maybe the research that went into creating it will allow researchers to create an even thinner, more portable device. In fact, I am fairly certain it will.
If you create an empty Word document, it is 19K. That is more space than was available on the first computer that I programmed on in 1987. (16k) I have over 4x the amount of space in memory in my computer at home than I had disk drive space in 1992. (384MB vs 80MB) I can't wait to see what we have in another 10 years.
My beliefs do not require that you agree with them.
I don't have a picture of it, but I have a Palm PDA with a shattered LCD. I hesitate to replace it, or to buy other products such as laptops that have fragile displays. If "collapsible" means that this new LCD is more rugged, it's a great idea.
Having read the article, I'm certain that this does not refer to a foldable LCD screen. What they is that the base colapses flat against the screen for transport. This is the same design introduced by Samsung on the 152B. The base (stand) colapses flat against the back of the monitor, making a sort of lightweight tablet to cary around.
The problem was, the keyboards would inevitably wear out when the machines were given to managers. Apparently the action of them folding out was even more mesmerizing than those kinetic managerial trip toys. Productivity plummeted due to all the managers just opening and closing their laptops all day long. IBM could have solved the technical problems with the keyboard with time, but there's nothing you can do about the manager-mesmerising potential.
I'm trying to teach myself to set people on fire with my mind... Is it hot in here?
is there room for this thing in your pocket, too?
ed
The Samsung 172 series LCDs already fold to a little over 2" thick. I stick my 172w in a briefcase for easy and safe trips to LANs. And its widescreen to boot!. I even have a review of it here.
"A coward dies a thousand deaths, the brave but one."
This is kinda what I'm lookin' for- a monitor that's rugged and can move from place to place. I'm tired of luggin' a 15" CRT out to a location to see what's wrong with a drone computer that has no monitor (like a security camera computer). It could also quickly tell me if it was the video card or monitor that just blew out. Ideally, I'd want something even smaller, but I haven't found anything stand-alone that's built with portability in mind..
NEC is a Japanese company and there is a market for anything that saves ANY amount of space there.
I don't understand why any of you can find a way to complain about an innovation....I thought this was supposed to be Nerd News here..
http://www.ohlssonvox.com
Finally, I no longer have to hear that nasty breaking glass sound every time I fold my LCD!
I'm guessing you might manage to rustle up a few people willing to pay.
From the etechkorea.info link that someone kindly provided, you can see a picture of the device. It also provides the quote: The seam between the two panels is less than 1 mm. This device doesn't have one LCD screen that folds in half, it's just a device that folds in half and has two side-by-side screens that act as one.
Where I'm really impressed is that this LCD doesn't require power to retain it's image. This really is digital paper in a digital book.
I'm not sure how big the market is, but when I travel to exhibits (particularly a tabletop display) I want a monitor of decent size, one that can be angled for the reader, and one that sits separate from my keyboard. Two heads are really much better for demonstrating in this context.
The options for having an extra display are typically to rent (at close to the full price of a new monitor) or bring your own. Current LCDs don't pack up very small (the Samsung 152B packs up the smallest of all the current 15" models I've seen), so you end up with a crate or box that either has to be shipped or checked as luggage.
A monitor that packs up small (and could possibly fit in my cat case) could pay for itself in shipping or customs costs on just one trans-Atlantic trip.
"Is that a monitor in your pocket or are you just happy to see me?"
Which, of course, would lead to, "Why, what a big monitor you have!"
Or, "Excuse me while I whip this out?"
(Apologies to WC Fields and Mel Brooks)
Why not make a laptop with two folding
/brainfart.
panels in front of the main display?
http://www.kobotica.com/inline/p3b.gif
That was just one example of the two I gave, and there are a plethora more. Undoubtable, hardcore gamers will be early adopters, and price may perhaps come down within a year or two.
-- Aumaden
We have Roll up Keyboards and now a roll up monitor. Once some new, smaller, hardware comes out, what's stopping someone from having a complete fold-up/roll-up system???
Just imagine being able to roll up your entire computer, with a 17+" monitor and stick it in your backpack, or fold it up and put it in your pocket!!
Does this mean that I'll never be able to fold it back up the same way it came?
It was foldable until you attempted to unfold it...
Even at that time, I guess it was still technically "foldable", but not necessarily "usable" after the first folding.
I have been waiting for this type of screen ever since I watched Earth: Final Conflict. They had these personal communcators that were like 1"x3" when stored but would pull apart to reveal a large video screen. This would be the perfect type of PDa device. I can't seem to find a picture of this device from the show but it really illustrates the usefulness of the idea.
If you navigate over to pcmag.com (for anyone who still doesn't know; IE; type 'pcmag'--sans quotes, of course--in the address bar, press CTRL+ENTER and it adds the rest) and look at The Future of Technology--go to the comparisons section and click--about four stories in you'll see OLED tech. There's of course also other interesting stuff (20 subjects). Most likely it's one of the technologies mentioned in first-off-the-shelf (and therefore something I wouldn't buy) phase...
oregonnerd...a nerd in Oregon, of course