“OLED on silicon may be used for glasses-type, augmented-reality devices much like the Google Glass” CEO Kim Ki-nam said during a SID keynote this past week. “The wearable market will be a major beneficiary of the free-form factor advantage of flexible OLEDs. Smartphone-linked wearable accessory products such as watches and health bands will use ultra-thin flexible OLEDs embedded with various sensors.”

Samsung has been talking up the potential of flexible OLED for some time, though is yet to commercially deploy the technology. That’s been promised for 2013 under the YOUM brand, however, slightly delayed after Samsung was apparently forced to dedicate the bulk of its production facility to making traditional AMOLED screens for devices like the Galaxy series of smartphones.

Back at CES, the company brought a number of concepts along, some using flexible OLED technology. There, the panels didn’t actively flex, but were instead wrapped around the shell of a device mock-up, and intended for use as an always-on status panel.

The current Glass Explorer Edition, which Google has sold to a limited number of developers for real-world testing and app development, uses a small plastic eyepiece into which the image is projected. Exact technical specifications for the display technology itself have not been shared, though it’s believed to be something along the lines of a transmissive color filter panel backlit with an LED in the headset section, near the camera module.

Switching to OLED would mean Google could do away with the separate LED backlighting, since OLED pixels produce their own lighting. It seems likely that Google would still use the wave splitter eyepiece block, since that allows the “floating” display to be translucent, though it’s worth noting that Samsung has been showing off translucent OLED panels for several years, and has in fact commercialized them on a small scale.

Either way, it would likely be a more compact setup than what is used in the Explorer Edition, as well as potentially more power-frugal. That could make for a lighter, longer-running Glass, something Google has said are key objectives for the consumer version.

Exactly when the mass-market Glass will launch is unclear, though Google chairman Eric Schmidt did suggest that sometime in 2014 is likely. Similarly unknown is how much it will retail for, though Google has been clear that it aims to make the wearable far more affordable than the $1,500 developer version.

VIA: AndroidBeat

Transparent OLEDs aren’t new – we got up close with Samsung’s transparent marketing system back at CES, for instance – and neither is OLED lighting. However, so far the two have been reluctant to play together.

In traditional OLED lighting panels, they’re only transparent when the light is turned off. Powered up, meanwhile, and light is emitted from both sides; that makes for excess power consumption and less control over what gets lit, Toshiba points out.

Toshiba’s system, however, is counter-intuitive in some ways, as it actually uses non-transparent electrodes. In fact, there’s a fine striping pattern of opaque metal electrodes and gaps, with those gaps allowing for “transmissive” light passage. It’s not fully transparent – Toshiba says it’s good for around a 68-percent light transmission rate – but it does mean that one side is light while the other is dark, and even when the OLED is lit up you can still see through.

The expectation is that the 1.4mm-thick OLED screens will be used in applications like advertising, along with goggles that can light up the work area. Aquariums could also be another potential area, though we’d love to see a video light built into a camcorder lens. Brightness of 450 to 800 cd/m2 is possible, with power consumption of 0-7 to 1.6W.

Toshiba will commercialize the technology itself, though it’s unclear when we could see the first products hit the market.

The flat OLED TV is priced at 11 million Korean won, and went up for preorder in January 2013 with shipments beginning the following month. As for this flexed variant, it will command a 50-percent premium, with LG pricing it at 15m won, or around $13,500.

Beyond the privilege of being at the cutting-edge of hardware, LG says early-adopters of the new TV will benefit from some technical advantages too. Because of the curved screen, the company claims, the distance from all points of the TV to the viewer’s eyes are the same, reducing distortion and blur. That also has an effect on 3D, LG says, with a better quality image than a flat screen can manage.

As for the design, the 55EA9800 is embedded in a carbon fiber reinforced clear plastic stand which weighs in at 17kg, with a minimum thickness of 4.3mm. LG has used transparent thin-film speakers, too, spreading the TV’s audio abilities across the front of the stand but without spoiling the looks.

Samsung, meanwhile, is yet to announce availability of its own curved OLED set, which it also demonstrated back at CES in January. Each of the TVs runs at 1080p Full HD resolution, which means that if home entertainment fans want Ultra HD resolution, they’ll currently need to stick with LCD technology. However, that’s likely to be a gap LG is looking to fill; the company announced it would invest more than $650m into OLED production this year.

Exactly what stage the talks – if there are, in fact, any at all beyond Page showing interest in where his Korean hosts took him to visit – are in is unclear, though sources inside Samsung suggest that if anything it’s very early days. “We don’t rule out the possibility to enter a new business partnership with Google in OLEDs” one unnamed official told the Korean paper, “but more time will be needed for further details.”

Interestingly, while Samsung has previously made use of OLED panels for Google-branded smartphones, such as the Galaxy Nexus, the chatter between Lee and Page is apparently now around larger displays. Sources within Samsung claim Google wants to increase its collaboration in OLED TV, mimicking some of the relationship the search company has around Google TV and LG.

The ongoing relationship between Samsung and Google has been the stuff of concerted rumor over the past year, with Samsung’s enthusiastic reskinning and general modification of Android – as well as the best-selling nature of the Galaxy series of smartphones – being seen as a challenge to Google’s driving role in the mobile OS. However, Samsung has also been facing issues from Apple, with whom it shares a difficult supplier/competitor relationship.

Samsung continues to supply Apple with many of the components the iPhone maker uses in its smartphone and tablet line-ups, not to mention memory for its Macs, but the two have found themselves frequently at odds in the courtroom over allegations of patent infringement and design copying. More recently, Apple is said to have been diversifying its supply-chain, in what’s believed to be an attempt to reduce its reliance on Samsung components.

How Google’s involvement in OLED production might shift that power dynamic again is unclear, though there remains talk of both Google and Apple having smart TV ambitions yet to be revealed. Last year, tenuous rumors of an LG-made Google Nexus TV circulated, for instance, borrowing the Nexus branding from mobile and extending it into the living room.

[via AndroidBeat]

LG Display’s work on flexible OLEDs has been underway for some time, though the company’s efforts have perhaps been overshadowed somewhat by rival Samsung’s YOUM development. Last year, according to a Korea Times report, LG Display was preparing for mass-production of flexible screens by the second half of 2013.

Samsung, meanwhile, demonstrated a flexible OLED concept back at CES, though the screen wasn’t implemented in quite the way many had expected. Rather than being a clamshell device, with the flexibility used to allow the prototype to open up and reveal a bigger panel, Samsung instead wrapped the display around the edge.

That allowed the handset to display status updates along the side, making for at-a-glance notifications without needing to power up the whole display. However, Samsung insisted at the time that the device was merely a concept of what flexible OLED could be used for, not an indication of an actual product in development.

While OLED panels have become more common in their use on mobile devices, LG Display still faces potential bottlenecks in ensuring supplies for its smartphone affiliate. Analysts have already warned that the next-gen displays still suffer from low yields, which likely means high prices and low numbers of products.

That would probably put the eventual device in line with LG’s curved OLED TVs, demonstrated at CES, officially intended for the market but at a cost that will make the potential audience tiny. Nonetheless, as a proof of capabilities, it suggests we could see flexible OLED phones more widespread in 2014 and beyond.

[via OLED-Info]

Reports Bloomberg, the Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency searched Samsung’s Asan-stationed display headquarters in search of documents that would indicate theft of LG’s OLED display technology. According to the report, the police have an active investigation going on regarding whether LG’s partners leaked the company’s secrets, and, in this particular case, whether Samsung could be on the receiving end.

In response, Samsung’s spokeswoman Jun Eun Sun offered a semi-smug statement: “We have no reason to steal other companies’ technology, as we have the world’s best OLED technology.” While the initial thought is that LG is behind the search, the company’s spokesman said that it didn’t have any involvement in the matter. “The latest investigation is related to large-sized OLED TV panel technology, but the police have made the allegation themselves.”

LG was smacked last year with theft accussations, with six of its workers being charged with stealing Samsung’s OLED technology. LG saw the matter different than the legal system, claiming that the technology its employees were charged with stealing was common industry information and that no trade secrets were involved. As it currently stands, LG has trumped Samsung in the OLED television market.

[via Bloomberg]

The company will implement a new 8th-generation OLED manufacturing line in South Korea that LG plans to start up in the first half of 2014, building 26,000 input sheets every month using LG’s WRGB OLED evaporation process. These sheets will be big enough to manufacturer 55-inch televisions.

It looks like LG Display is ramping up its efforts in order to compete with Samsung, which also recently launched a 55-inch OLED television set at CES last month, as well as curved displays alongside LG, with both companies referring to them as “the world’s first” curved OLED set, even though they debuted at the same time.

OLED televisions are said to have more vivid colors with deeper blacks and whiter whites, compared to existing liquid crystal display units. The new technology also allows manufacturers to make really thin TVs, and it may eventually make its way into laptops, where the OLED technology could save on battery life. LG’s investment will begin sometime during this first quarter.

It seems that Apple is keeping mum about the news, but OLED-Info is reporting that the Cupertino-based company ended up snatching the OLED expert in hopes to develop higher-quality displays for future iPhone, iPads, and maybe even televisions one day. Of course, OLED displays were abundant in televisions at CES last month, so it could mean that Apple will use Lee to help the company build a television set sometime in the future.

OLED (organic light-emitting diode) has a number of advantages over regular LCD screens. For starters, OLED features brighter colors with deeper blacks, and it also offers wider viewing angles and faster response times. Plus, the technology can be used to create thinner displays that are very battery efficient, and it has been used to created flexible displays that could be in our future.

Of course, Apple hasn’t confirmed the hire of Lee at this point, and we’re not sure if or when they’ll officially announce it, but it certainly makes sense that Apple is moving further and further into the OLED kingdom, where we could soon see their mobile devices utilizing the new lighting technology.

[via AppleInsider]

And yet, the rumor persists that Apple – either later this year or sometime in 2014 – will launch the long-speculated set. That device, its supporters say, will be the product that television buyers have been waiting for, complete with access to apps and high-quality specs. Apple will find a way, the company’s supporters insist, to revolutionize the television industry.

But perhaps those supporters are wrong.

If Apple is indeed working on a television, the company finds itself in No Man’s Land. In the television market right now, plasmas, while still delivering great picture quality, are seeing their sales dwindle. LCDs and LED-backlit screens are performing relatively well, but also seem to be waning. If CES 2013 taught us anything, it’s that vendors believe the future of television relies in OLED and 4K (Ultra HD).

The problem with OLED and 4K is that televisions featuring those technologies are wildly expensive. Currently, some Ultra HD sets are on sale for tens of thousands of dollars. And although OLED delivers an incredible visual experience, models using that technology are similarly cost-prohibitive to the average consumers.

However, most of the folks in the television industry believe that there’s a good chance that by the end of 2014, those prices will be down to levels that some consumers would find acceptable. Interestingly, it’s possible that the Ultra HD sets will be cheaper than OLEDs at first, simply because of the issues vendors are having producing OLED panels.

Still, it identifies a potential issue for Apple: if the company launches a standard 1080p, LED-backlit screen this year or next, it might get some traction in the marketplace for a time, but it’ll quickly become obsolete. If Apple waits until 2015 to launch an OLED or 4K television to capitalize on that new trend, all of the hype the company has been taking advantage of over the last few years will be lost.

Realizing that, I can’t help but wonder if Apple’s television efforts are in trouble. Granted, the company will deliver a software experience in the television that will likely top anything in the marketplace, and Apple has the ability to succeed in spots where others might not, but the television industry is highly competitive and notorious for its low margins. If Apple can’t find a way to deliver the right product at the right price for the right value to consumers, it’ll lose.

Tim Cook and his executive team must know that. They must also realize that the ideal time to launch an Apple television was not 2013 or 2014, but 2012, when the new technologies were still years off.

Like it or not, Apple might have missed its best opportunity to succeed in the television market.

One of the largest makers of OLED displays in the world is Samsung Display. The company is bragging today that it has exceeded 300 million OLED panels produced. That number comes since the company began producing displays using the technology in January 2007.

Samsung offered some interesting facts to illustrate how many panels 300 million is. If you stacked all 300 million OLED panels the company has produced on top of one another, they would be more than 68 times the height of Mount Everest. The volume produce works out to over 470,000 panels a day.

Breaking the number down further, Samsung Display produced around 5.4 panels per second. Samsung Display says that they took 4 1/2 years to reach 100 million panels produced mark. With quick adoption of the technology, the next 100 million panels were produced in only seven months. Samsung Display has 98% of the OLED market in the displays are currently used in smartphones, tablets, and digital cameras.

[via Samsung]

I

That method of production is a printing method where OLED materials are applied to the substrate through printing technique to form a electroluminescent layer. Panasonic says that due to the simplicity of the production process it expects that the technology will be easily adaptable to the production of panels in a variety of screen sizes.

Panasonic says that its printing method also makes it possible to apply just the right amount of organic material to where it’s needed reducing waste material and shortening production leadtime. That all means that the Panasonic printing method makes the production of OLED panels more affordable and products using these panels cheaper.

Panasonic says that it’s all-printing method is suitable for panels as large as 56-inches and the process technology enables the separate application of the RGB OLED materials by color. The panel produced using this method has a peak luminance of 500 cd/m2 and supports a 10-bit grayscale. The thickest part of the panel is 8.9 mm and it weighs 12.4 kg. The contrast ratio for the panel is 3,000,000:1 and its able to reproduce 100% of the NTSC color gamut.

Both of the sets come in at 55-inches, and each runs at 1080p Full HD rather than Ultra HD. You’ll have to look to more traditional LED panels if you want 4K resolution, at least for the moment.

Even without those extra pixels, you’re getting a luscious viewing experience. We’re familiar with OLED’s richness of color and crisp detailing, from the previously-shown, flat OLED sets, but standing at the center of the flexed panels new for 2013 does feel somewhat more immersive than before.

Unfortunately, we’ll have to wait to experience that at home. Both Samsung and LG are tight-lipped on detailed specifications, launch plans, and pricing, which leads us to suspect that curvy big-screen OLED TVs aren’t headed to our living rooms any time soon (or at a price we could stomach).

Deliveries of the TV to Korean customers are set to begin in February. If you thought the Korean price, which worked out to $10,000 here in the US was expensive; you won’t like the official US pricing at all. LG has confirmed that the MSRP for the TV in the United States will be $11,999.

One of the hallmarks of the OLED TV is an incredibly thin design that is only 4 mm thick. The TV also weighs less than 22 pounds and promises exceptional color reproduction along with vivid and realistic images. The TV uses LG’s unique Four Color Pixel system with a white sub pixel working with conventional red, blue, and green pixels to create the perfect color.

The TV also has LG’s exclusive Color Refiner technology to provide greater tonal enhancement that results in images that are more vibrant and natural. The TV also has an infinite contrast ratio that maintains optimal contrast levels regardless of ambient light or viewing angles.

Inside the 85-inch behemoth, there’s not only 2D to 3D conversion, but HD to UHD conversion, along with Smart TV features like streaming, apps, motion control, and voice control. It’s all powered by an A15 quadcore 1.35GHz processor, something you’d more commonly expect to find in a high-end phone or tablet, as well as support for the Smart Evolution Kit which will add new features further down the line. However, it’s likely to unusual easel-style mount which will grab the most attention (at least before the screen gets powered on).

Samsung has been pushing OLED as the Next Big Thing in TV technology, and the 55-inch KN55F9500 Real OLED TV is the latest iteration of the company’s vision. Built around the same quadcore processor as the UN85S9000, and with all the Smart TV functionality including voice control and streaming media, the OLED set is also the first to feature Samsung Multi-View, which uses 3D display technology to show two viewers (each wearing active 3D glasses) different content simultaneously.

That works in 2D and 3D, and even delivers stereo audio to the viewer thanks to tiny speakers built into the glasses. There’s also Smart Evolution Kit Connector support, and a new version of Motion Control gesture recognition that can better track hands held at up to 45-degree angles.

Most regular buyers will head to Samsung’s LED 8000 Series or LED 7000 Series sets, of course, also new for CES 2013. The 60-inch UN60F8000 borrows the 1.35GHz quadcore A15 of its bigger brother, along with the same Smart TV functionality, motion and voice control, and streaming from the web and mobile devices. It also gets Micro Dimming Ultimate for more precise control of the LED backlighting, and De-Jagging Pro for cleaner edges. 3D crosstalk is down too, by 30-percent, and even web content is meant to look better, with text and image processing applied to the TV’s browser.

As for the 60-inch UN60F7500, that sticks with the same quadcore processor but does without the Micro Dimming Ultimate technology; otherwise, it’s the same mixture of De-Jagging Pro smoothing, Precision Black intelligent contrast control, and improved 3D crosstalk prevention. Both the 8000 and 7000 Series support the Evolution Kit.

Finally, there’s a new plasma set on offer, the Samsung Plasma 8500 Series, with the 64-inch PN64F8500 promising the darkest blacks and brightest pictures ever from a plasma TV. It shares the processor and Smart TV features as its LED brethren, but adds Deep Black Algorithm II and Real Black Pro for a combination of computer-controlled white light reduction – keeping those black areas inky – as well as 2.5x brighter whites when necessary. There’s also a new “nanocarbon compound” used to reduce stray ambient light.

Samsung doesn’t have availability or pricing details for either the UN85S9000 or the KN55F9500, though neither is likely to be cheap. The LED 8000 Series will ship in the first half of 2013, along with the LED 7000 Series, and the Plasma 8500 Series.

There are two HDMI inputs and Bluetooth, while the bundled speakers include two towers and a rear wireless unit. All get Ceramic Polypropylene Injection Diaphragm spacer cones, for what Samsung promises is an improvement in audio response times.

If that’s too big for you, the Samsung HW-F750 Soundbar also features a vacuum tube and digital amp comp, with 310W out of 2.1-channels and support for virtual surround sound. A wireless subwoofer keeps the bass end happy, and there’s 3D Sound Plus processing which matches the virtual surround sound depth with the depth of 3D images on-screen. Bluetooth streaming supports mobile devices and certain Samsung TVs.

Also toting Bluetooth is the Samsung DA-F60 Portable Wireless Speakers, using aptX for higher quality streaming (with compatible source devices, such as Samsung’s more recent smartphones) and NFC for easier pairing. It also supports streaming from select Samsung TVs.

While streaming from Netflix, Hulu Plus, Amazon Video on Demand, and other online sources has been built into Samsung’s Smart TVs for some time now, the company also has a new Blu-ray player for CES. The Samsung BD-F7500 can upscale to 4K resolution, and features integrated WiFi for AllShare streaming from mobile devices. It can also stream to a Samsung phone or tablet, thanks to Smart View support. Inside there are two 900MHz dualcore processors, and 7.1-channel analog audio outputs.

The Samsung HT-F9750W Home Theater System, HW-F750 Soundbar, DA-F60 Wireless Speakers, and BD-F7500 Blu-ray player all will go on sale in the first half of 2013, with pricing to be confirmed.

The WRGB OLED TV has a lot going for it, aside from its massive OLED display. The unit measures in at 4 millimeters wide, and weighs in at less than 22lbs. The device offers “infinite contrast ratio” so that the contrast stays consistent regardless of what angle the screen is being viewed at or the lighting in the room where it is located. There’s also the inclusion of a white sub-pixel via LG’s Four-Color Pixel for excellent colors.

The previous version of the 55-inch wonder was awarded Best of Show at CES, and has been eagerly anticipated. LG operates in excess of 1400 retail locations throughout Korea, all of which will begin taking pre-orders on January 3. Of course, the limiting factor here is going to be cost, with the unit priced at 11 million Korean Won, or about $10,000 USD.

LG’s President and CEO Havis Kwon offered this statement: “We are extremely pleased to be able to make this announcement at the start of the new year because we believe that OLED will usher in a whole new era of home entertainment … When high definition TV was first introduced 15 years ago, the public’s reaction was ‘wow!’ but when customers see our razor-thin OLED TV for the first time, they’re left speechless.”

[via LG]

Specifications of the new Note 3 are unclear, though if the chatter of an even bigger display is true, it’s arguable whether the device could still be considered a phone or if it’s actually a small tablet. Samsung has also been rumored to be considering a mid-range Note tablet of roughly 7-inches, pen-enabled and slotting in-between the Note II and the Note 10.1, and it’s possible this latest speculation has been conflated with that.

The whispers of a larger Note phone come amid talk of Samsung slashing its LCD production budget. “With money saved from LCD restructuring, the firm plans to spend more on OLED and flexible displays” one local parts supplier told the Korea Times. Saturation of the LCD panel market is cited as a primary motivator, along with Samsung’s goal to differentiate itself with OLED-based technologies.

That OLED push will include 55-inch TVs using the panels, which promise lower power consumption than LCD or plasma sets, but better colors, contrast, and viewing angles. Samsung has already shown off one such model.

The supply chain sources also lend weight to previous rumors that Samsung will unveil the Galaxy S 4 (aka Galaxy S IV) at Mobile World Congress 2013 in late February. Exact release times for the new flagship phone have varied, with some expecting an April timeframe.

[via Stefan Constantine]

A study from NPD DisplaySearch shows that the diagonal length of displays on electronic devices and even public signboards is increasing. Smartphones, specifically, will see a whopping 38% increase in screen size by 2013 based on data that dates back to 2010. This isn’t too surprising, since the popularity of 5-inch “phablets” is rising fairly quickly.

OLED televisions will see a 267% increase from 2010 to 2013, with the average screen size jumping from 15 inches to a massive 55 inches. Despite the significant jump, this also isn’t too surprising, since OLED technology is still rather new. However, one category that hasn’t seen a rise in average screen size are “mobile PCs,” which consist of laptops, netbooks, Ultrabooks, and tablets.

While that may seem like a surprise, the popularity of smaller form-factor laptops and Ultrabooks has made it so that the screen size usually doesn’t go over 15 inches, and it most likely won’t for some time. It’s the same deal with tablets; anything over 10 inches is considered fairly large and bulky for a tablet.

[via TechCrunch]

The display is an odd aspect ratio – long and narrow, to wrap around your wrist – and so the resolution is atypical at 256 x 64. Brightness is 100 cd/m2, and of course there’s full color support; if you’ve ever wanted to watch video of very tall, narrow buildings as well as tell the time, this could be the concept for you.

What we don’t know is power consumption. Recent smartwatches have used e-paper or transflective panels so as to minimize energy requirements, on the assumption that a compact device will only have minimal space for a battery but still be expected to deliver all-day runtimes. Futaba wasn’t saying exactly what sort of power draw the 0.22mm OLED demanded, though the display technology has generally been more frugal than traditional LCD.

Of course, this watch itself won’t be hitting the market, as it’s just a way for Futaba to show off what its flexible OLED is capable of. Still, the screen technology is production-ready – the company had a 0.29mm version back in June – and is just waiting on a vendor with a suitable application to snap it up.

The viewfinder also includes an eye sensor, which can automatically shut off the main display when it recognizes that it’s being used, thus saving battery life. There’s also 6fps burst shooting at full resolution (rising to 20fps in 4-megapixel mode) and the HDR mode works in the background so that there’s no delay to taking the next shot.

As for video, up to 1080p Full HD is supported, with Dolby Digital sound, an integrated stereo microphone, and twin 3.5mm jacks for headphones and an external microphone. Footage – recorded at up to 72Mbps (ALL-Intra) or 50Mbps (IPB), with frame rates of 60p, 30p, or 24p – can be stored in AVCHD, AVCHD Progressive, MP3, or MOV formats, and there are various manual control options as well as autofocus, autofocus tracking, and face-recognition autofocus. The touchscreen can be used for touch-setting autofocus points.

The pop-up flash is GN12 equivalent at ISO 100, though there’s a mount for a separate flash if it’s not powerful enough for your tastes. Panasonic offers an external flash with wireless and LED for video, as well as a battery grip. Video output can be delivered in real-time using the mini HDMI connection, with the choice of showing solely the camera’s view, or the menus as well.

Panasonic has also baked in WiFi b/g/n, used for transferring files either to the cloud or a computer, and there’s a remote app for controlling the GH3 wirelessly. If your phone or tablet has GPS, that data can be appended to each photo or clip too. Onboard controls can be reprogrammed, with five hardware function buttons and two software presets, and the whole camera is ruggedized against dust and splashes.

Joining the LUMIX G X VARIO 12-35mm, f/2.8 ASPH. POWER O.I.S. lens already available is a new zoom, the LUMIX G X VARIO 35-100mm. That offers f/2.8  and POWER O.I.S. as well, and both are dust/splashproof. Obviously any other micro four thirds lenses will work with the GH3, though you’ll need a mount adapter.

Panasonic is yet to confirm final pricing, but expects the new model to be on shelves by the end of the year with a roughly $2,000 tag.

Where wearables like Google Glass focus on overlaying digital data on top of the virtual world, Sony’s headset hopes to take you away from it. The two OLEDs are enclosed in a white and black plastic visor – you can see your feet below you, but nothing ahead of you – and though they’re each only 0.7-inches diagonal, the effect is of watching a considerably larger screen at a distance of several feet.

The first struggle is getting it to fit. Perhaps I have an unfeasibly large head, but getting the adjustable strap – which pulls on like a baseball cap, from back to front – to sit snugly but still allow the visor to sit in my eye-line proved tricky. You also need headphones, either a set of in-ear buds plugging into the HMZ-T2 itself, or a separate pair of cans that you put on secondly. There’s a padded piece that rests against your forehead, and while we were able to ignore it initially, we could imagine it might get uncomfortable after watching a full feature film.

Once you’ve actually got it on, though, the result is impressive. The screens may be 720p not 1080p, but you don’t notice at that distance: the overall effect is of crisp visuals that are bright enough to be clear but not so much as to hurt your eyes. Meanwhile the 3D effect is excellent: none of the shimmer or shudder that you can suffer using regular 3D TVs.

Controls are hidden on the lower side of the headset, though they’re quite small and – since you can’t actually see them when you’re pressing them – could do with being larger for more straightforward navigation. A dual display switcher, meanwhile, allows for two players to game on the same console, one using the TV as normal and the other seeing their own personal view through the HMZ-T2.

Sony HMZ-T2 hands-on:

Sony isn’t talking price yet for the T2, though its predecessor came in at around $800. That gets you a big TV for home viewing or a couple of tablets for on the move, though the latter are never really going to provide the same visual experience as the former. The HMZ-T2, however, might well prove a sufficient alternative, and that’s before you get into the possibility of hooking up computers or other devices to take advantage. Expect it to hit shelves later in 2012.

According to the report, Samsung has hit 350 ppi on an OLED display using Fine Metal Mask technology. Samsung had previously used L ITI technology to hit such pixel densities on portable displays. If the report is accurate and Samsung was able to hit the 350 ppi mark using Fine Metal Mask, it would be able to roll out the process to its current AMOLED facilities.

There has been no official confirmation from Samsung that it has hit this milestone. However, if it’s true, we could see significantly higher pixel density OLED screens coming to smartphones soon. Apple’s Retina display has a pixel density of 326 ppi for comparison.

[via OLED-info]

Featured: Here are some of this week’s featured articles:
SlashGear Android app of the week: Auralux with Tegra-exclusive expansion
What would the gaming industry look like without Mario?
Samsung Music Hub beta release hands-on
The movie is over when the credits roll
Olympus OM-D E-M5 review
AVADirect Quiet Gaming PC Custom System (Z77, Core i7 Ivy Bridge) review
Wearable worries: Glass could trigger more than just virtual violence

Other Stuff: It’s hard to piece together the rest of the most interesting stories from the last week, but here goes. Here’s something from Apple – Apple patents mobile scroll bar. Speaking of claiming ownership of technological ideas – LG employees charged with swiping OLED tech from Samsung. And in a completely different channel of news, we’ll finish with this – Seattle hacker held for massive retail cyberattack.

LG, of course, denies any involvement in the theft of Samsung’s technology and claims that the information Samsung accuses it of stealing was already widely known, and therefore can’t be considered a trade secret. OLED looks like it’s going to be the next big thing in display technology, and with OLED TVs costing thousands upon thousands of dollars, it’s pretty easy to see why Samsung is being so protective of its information in this case.

Interestingly enough, Samsung doesn’t want any money, just a formal apology from LG Display. LG, on the other hand, is apparently planning to take Samsung to court for defamation.

Who is right and who is wrong here isn’t for us to decide, but it sure does make the day a whole lot more exciting. Samsung and LG are the world’s two largest flat-panel makers, and there isn’t any doubt that the two will be competing fiercely when it comes to making OLED technology the new industry standard for displays. LG could be in a mess of trouble if it turns out that Samsung’s charges are legitimate, so this will definitely be a story to watch in the coming days and weeks. Stay tuned.

[via Bloomberg]

Samsung Display plans to expand the company’s management efficiency and optimize beneficial effects of its LCD and OLED businesses. The company also plans to improve its competitive edge globally with a combination of its OLED production technology and precision large panel operations along with a seasoned supply chain previously used by Samsung Mobile Display and S-LCD.

The company has also announced its new corporate slogan “displays beyond imagination” and talked about its plans to leverage its technology to lead the future. There’s no indication of when we might see the first mobile devices using Samsung Display screens on the market.

Oh-hyun Kwon said, “Samsung Display is destined to attain virtually unlimited growth, through continuous efforts to combine our proven know-how in the display field with an overwhelming creative spirit.” He added, “Our combined strengths will guide Samsung’s display business through the next decade and longer, in turning the many synergistic benefits of the company into far-reaching, tangible results.”

The two firms have kept the door open for potentially collaborating on mass-production of large-scale OLED displays, as well as continuing research into their manufacture and development. Actual scale production could happen as soon as 2013, it’s said.

Rumors of the deal had begun some time ago, with both companies chasing their Korean rivals for the edge in OLED. Samsung and LG have each demonstrated 55-inch OLED HDTVs with launch plans for later in the year, and while the considerable price tags scale the sets out of the budget of most buyers, it’s nonetheless an important first step on the process to making the technology mass-market.

In contrast, Sony flirted with OLED in TVs back in 2007, with the world’s first such set (measuring a mere 11-inches, so not something you’d probably want to gather the family around for the latest blockbuster), but axed development a few years later as it struggled to return to profitability. Exact terms of the deal have not been announced.

Featured: Sometimes we at SlashGear go on some pretty epic journeys just to catch up on the latest tech news. This time we’re coming at you all the was from South Korea and are offering a look at one of the most impressive smartphones that we have seen to date. There’s no guarantee it will come to the US, but you should check it out – LG Optimus LTE2 hands-on in Korea.

Facebook, Chrome, & OLED: So as we wrap up the Wrap-Up, let’s take a look at the other stories that grabbed headlines today while you were out earning a living. For starters – Facebook enhances transparency in its data use policy. And that’s not the only thing that is getting enhanced. We’re talking about Chrome 19 – Chrome 19 stable release adds tab syncing. And finally, an advancement in TVs may soon be coming your way – Sony and Paasonic reportedly in talks to partner on OLED.

While the two are reportedly in initial talks, sources say the companies may not reach a conclusion, and that other partners may form an alliance. The move comes after both companies posted massive losses for the last financial year. Panasonic was struck with a $9 billion loss thanks to the damage done to its supply chain by the Japanese earthquake, and Sony posted a $5.7 billion loss.

The two are hoping to partner in order to produce OLED panels without being the sole bearer of development and manufacturing costs. The Wall Street Journal notes that Japanese TV manufacturers have been stuck once before when the industry shifted from CRTs to flat panel TVs. Companies invested billion of dollars in order to increase production, but price wars ensued resulting in low profits.

What you’re seeing in the images above and below are YOUM brand flexible AMOLED screens as they were presented at CES 2011. We’ve not seen this technology in-person for quite some time likely because Samsung is bringing the heat to the market in full force here very soon. Have a peek at OLED Display’s presentation of the YOUM display back at CES 2011 – note that Samsung was already attached to the project in part back then:

Samsung has declined to speak on the matter insofar as how exactly the displays will be used on devices. We’ll more than likely see them used on mobile devices sold on a small scale at first, especially since such strange technology simply isn’t in demand right this minute because so few people have had their hands on it. That said, who knows how effective the drive will be once Samsung brings out the big floppy guns here at the tail end of 2012. Expect this bend in your display to show up be the end of the year!

[via OLED Display]

As was demonstrated at CES, the TV will feature a dual-core CPU that can be swapped out using an upgradable module in the future. Voice and gesture controls are also on board, although the picture quality is the real star of the show. Samsung say the TV has 20% better color reproduction that existing TVs, and the use of OLED means you’ll get true blacks and a near infinite contrast ratio.

The ES9500 will also feature a “dual-view” function, allowing two separate 2D videos to be watched at the same time, with separate audio being pumped through the earphones included on the 3D glasses. An interesting concept that would put an end to prime-time viewing arguments, although we’ll have to wait to see how well it really works.

Price wise, it’s not looking good. The AP says the TV is set to cost around 10 million won (~$8,750), and the TV isn’t set to ship until the “second half” of the year. The prices aren’t expected to come down until the OLED TV tech becomes more mainstream in the next two to three years. Better start saving up in the meantime.

[via Samsung Tomorrow]

Samsung confirmed its OLED plans last week, revealing that the big-screen set would see an official reveal at IFA 2012 in late August. However, according to these new sources, the company could even release OLED models earlier than that, targeting a pre-Olympics window as well. The games kick off in London, UK, in late July.

No matter who gets to say they were the first to the market, neither company’s TV is expected to be particularly affordable. LG is tipped to be considering a price tag in the region of $7,900 for its 55-incher, and while Samsung hasn’t committed to any figures yet, something in the same ballpark is expected. Sources suggest the Samsung model will be double the price of a similarly-sized smart TV from the firm.

In return for your cash there will be the usual vivid colors, huge contrast range and generally delicious picture quality we’re familiar with from OLED screens.

In fact, so far Samsung has only said that it will put the OLED set on sale sometime in 2012. LG’s counterpart set, also shown at CES 2012, is believed to be launching with a roughly $7,900 tag, though, and so we’re expecting something similarly eye-watering from Samsung.

We’ll know for sure at IFA 2012, along with details of the Korean company’s new flagship range. Samsung only dropped vague hints about that new line-up, though described it as even “more premium” than the OLED model. We’re guessing that means in terms of functionality and design rather than screen technology, unless Samsung has some serious surprises up its collective engineering sleeves.

Samsung 55-inch OLED TV live:

What both should support is the newest iteration of Samsung AllShare, which adds in a cloud element to what until now has been a local DLNA-based service. A free 5GB cloud account for device buyers will allow for automatic upload of photos, audio and video shot on gadgets like the Galaxy Tab series of tablets or Galaxy phones, and then remote access and streaming playback on other phones, tablets, or TVs.

That will be followed by a remote login system later in 2012, which Samsung describes as allowing its users to access any of the company’s devices they own, no matter where they are in the world – providing they have a data connection – with a single Samsung account login. Laptops, phones, tablets and more will be supported; the company will detail the system further at IFA 2012 in late August.

That’s down to the differences in the “sandwich” of layers that make up a YOUM flexible display. An LCD screen would usually have six, two of which would be glass; an OLED panel would have four, again two of which would be glass.

It’s that glass which makes the screens more vulnerable to damage, and indeed stops them from flexing or folding. In contrast, Samsung’s YOUM panels use film-based encapsulation (“encap”) and TFT layers, rather than glass substrates, which make them more resilient to damage along with allowing more flexibility in device design.

Samsung has previously shown off foldable devices as well as various flexible prototypes, and has suggested that as well as gadgets which literally bend, it could also use the YOUM AMOLED technology to create wraparound displays that could cover two or more surfaces. That way, your phone could have a regular front screen that continues around to the side.

Mass production of the displays is tipped to be kicking off this quarter, with the first commercial applications later in 2012.

[via OLED-Display.net]

Michael Helander and Zhibin Wang are PhD candidates at the Faculty of Applied Science and Engineering. The prototype that they researched and engineered is a cheaper and more efficient way of creating flat panel displays, that would also benefit from increased brightness.

They came about the “happy accident” by cleaning sheets of indium tin oxide, a material used in all flat-panel displays. They discovered that the cleaned displays became brighter and used less energy after picking up chlorine from the cleaning material used. After that, the students engineered an OLED prototype display which is simpler in construction and requires less power.

Helander and Wang both believe the discovery could lead to a less fragile smartphone that requires less juice to survive the day. Whether or not we’ll see this new development working its way into upcoming products remains to be seen, but it’s something to look forward to. Head to the source link below for a video with a more detailed explanation of the science.

[via PhysOrg]

The rumor points to launch coinciding with the Cannes Film Festival. The price rumored for the set is 9,000,000 won, which is the equivalent of $7900. That is seriously expensive for a TV considering you get 3D LCD sets for much less than that price for an equivalent screen size. Apparently, that price is consistent with what DisplaySearch has estimated for OLED sets.

The launch was initially expected to come during the London Olympics kicking off this July, but LG wants to be the first out of the gates with an OLED set. Once the 55-inch screen hits the market, LG will decide whether more OLED models will come to market based on customer interest. At nearly $8000 I don’t see the TV selling in large volumes. I think with the sluggish economy around the world most people aren’t ready for a high-end OLED TV.

[via OLED-info]

While the new iPad could qualify – with some calibration, currently unavailable in the iOS settings – as a reference monitor, DisplayMate found power efficiency had taken a serious dive. In comparison to that of the iPad 2, the new screen uses 2.5x the amount of power to provide the same brightness; despite Apple outfitting its latest model with a considerably larger battery, at full brightness it lasted 5.8hrs, versus the iPad 2 lasting 7.2hrs.

The impact on the end-user may not be so serious, however, with runtimes at medium brightness being roughly the same for both models. The stronger backlight is a necessary evil from the fourfold increase in pixels; the LCD IPS panel uses a technology called Super High Aperture and the backlight has to work through a greater amount of TFT transistors involved in the stacked display structure.

Reflectance also gets a mention, with the new iPad falling in the mid-point for tablets and smartphones; that’s supposedly something which could be addressed by a shift to OLED panels instead, though power efficiency, cost and production headaches prevent such a move. Apple could, though use RGB LED backlighting, improving color saturation, rather than the white LED system currently implemented.

Hardware

Unlike the LiveView, which was navigated by tapping touch-sensitive buttons around the edge of the bezel, the SmartWatch has a proper touchscreen. It’s a small one, mind, a 1.3-inch color OLED panel running at mere 128 x 128 resolution and supporting two-finger multitouch gestures. The only physical control is a power button on the right edge.

Most of the watch is plastic, which makes it pleasingly lightweight: the main unit itself is 36 x 26 x 8 mm and15.5g, and Sony bundles a rubbery watch-strap that adds 26g. It’s not as bulky as, say, the strap included with the WIMM One developer kit, but it’s still not going to be mistaken for anything approaching luxury. The SmartWatch itself has a spring-loaded clip on the back that attaches it to the strap or your coat/bag.

It’s also used with the proprietary charging system. Rather than accommodate a microUSB port, the SmartWatch uses a special USB cable terminating with a hooked end, that clips into place against charging terminals. It’s a clever approach, though it does mean you have to carry the cable if you want to be able to top the SmartWatch up on the move.

Inside there’s a Bluetooth 3.0 radio – not Bluetooth 4.0, which counts low-power connectivity as one of its primary benefits – and a non-accessible battery that Sony says is good for up to a week of “low usage” or a day of “heavy usage.” You also get a vibration alert and a tiny speaker for notifications.

Software

The SmartWatch’s interface is reasonably straightforward. It defaults to a clock screen – the time and date pulled from your smartphone – in blue characters on a black background – then wakes up to show persistent battery life, a slider graphic to show side-scrolling app icons, and the time. Four icons are shown on-screen at any one time.

Navigation through the menus and apps is via taps and swipes, and is generally – with one key annoyance – simple. What isn’t made obvious is the gesture to go back through the UI: a two-finger pinch. Unfortunately, the small size of the display makes this gesture feel cramped, and we’d rather have a single-touch motion do the same thing. There are also times when the buttons don’t make use of the full screen – the “View in Phone” button is a good example, only occupying a small slice of an otherwise empty display – which feels wasteful given it’s already a compact panel.

Sony SmartWatch hands-on:

The watch itself is only half the story, however. Your Android phone must be running Sony’s LiveWare app with the SmartWatch plugin installed – both are available free from the Play Market, and recent Sony handsets should have the former already installed. Obviously the apps support Sony’s range, but you can use certain third-party Android phones too. Sony has a list of those it has tested.

Unfortunately, the LiveWare app is somewhat frustrating in use. Selecting the SmartWatch from the accessory list – the same app is also used to trigger macros when, say, you plug the mains charger in – shows a list of possible functionality you can install to the watch itself: choosing one takes you to the Play Market, where they can be individually downloaded. After they install, there’s no new icon: instead you jump back into the LiveWare app to handle any of the basic settings.

As a system it works, but it’s far less streamlined than the in-app download store WIMM One has developed. The plus side is that you can install apps directly from the .APK file, though whether most users will benefit from that is questionable.

Performance

We tried the SmartWatch with both Sony’s own Xperia S – running Android 2.3 – and a Galaxy Nexus running Ice Cream Sandwich, the latter absent from the tested compatibility list. One of our main frustrations with the LiveView was its tendency to drop the Bluetooth connection every so often, so we were pleased to see that the Xperia S and the SmartWatch stayed happily connected.

From there on, the usefulness of the SmartWatch varied. It’s definitely a companion screen to your phone, not a replacement: the functionality each app offers is shallow, and the watch basically helps you decide whether or not it’s worth pulling that phone out from your pocket or purse.

The call and text messaging features are straightforward: incoming calls show number and, if saved to the contacts, the name from your address book, as well as buttons to answer or reject. Still, if you answer it you can’t use the SmartWatch as a wrist-worn speakerphone. Music playback can be controlled too, with volume, play/pause and track skip buttons on top of album art.

Twitter and Facebook functionality is basic, showing the contents of new tweets or statuses. You can Like those Facebook statuses from the SmartWatch itself, or open the specific message on your phone; the Twitter app allows you to save a single preconfigured reply to fire back from the watch, though the usefulness of that is limited.

The email app could be useful – showing notifications on a new message, with sender, subject line and the first line or so of the body-text, then allowing you to open the message up on your phone – but it unfortunately only works with the Sony Android Mail app. Gmail users, far more prevalent, get a third-party notifier app that flags up new messages but doesn’t preview them.

Another third-party app is the VFinder camera remote control, which streams a live view from the Xperia S’ camera direct to the screen of the SmartWatch and, when you swipe up, takes a photo. You’re obviously limited by the 10m Bluetooth range, and we found the app would usually crash if we flipped from portrait to landscape orientation, but it’s a good demo for friends and useful for handsfree vanity shots.

Other apps show battery status of your phone, weather widgets, currency conversion and phonebook access, with varying degrees of stability. There are more on the way, too; exercise tracking app Endomondo is apparently in the pipeline, among others.

Our experience with the Galaxy Nexus proved less successful. Bluetooth connections were reasonably stable, but we had issues with the LiveView manager: widgets that said they had installed did not show up in the list of options. It’s unclear if this is an Ice Cream Sandwich problem or something else, but we can’t particularly hold Sony responsible as the Android 4.0 phone isn’t among its list of tested models.

The OLED display is a little crunchy with graphics and texts, thanks to its relatively low resolution, but decent indoors. Outdoors, it’s fairly visible though we found ourselves shading it with a hand when in brighter light. In contrast, the transflective display on the WIMM One proved far easier to see in the same conditions.

Battery

After a full day of wearing, with pinging Gmail notifications, some incoming call and message alerts, and a little pretend-spy play with the remote camera viewfinder app, we still had battery life showing on the SmartWatch. You’d have to be a low-volume user to get the full week Sony suggests out of it, mind, and we can’t see that audience being especially interested in the SmartWatch.

Wrap-Up

Compared to its predecessor, the Sony SmartWatch is a vast improvement: for a start it can keep hold of a Bluetooth connection. Still, what worth it brings to most users remains questionable. If you regularly field calls and receive – but don’t need to reply to – text messages then it could be useful; if you generally feel the need to reply to your messages and emails, then you’re still going to be pulling your phone out anyway.

Third-party app support may address that in the coming months, and we can see fitness buffs appreciating the remote functionality from incoming apps like Endomondo along with the music control. Still, we can’t help but wish Android voice commands were supported: that way, you could talk into your SmartWatch and dictate a reply instantly. Meanwhile, with Sony pushing its NFC SmartTags for the Xperia S, it would’ve been nice to be able to hold the SmartWatch next to one and remotely trigger functionality on the handset.

At $119.99 or £89.99 when it arrives in mid-April, it’s an expensive sell for something that, for the most part, remains a gimmick. We’re not convinced with the usability of the SmartWatch’s display when outdoors, either, preferring the panel technology on the WIMM One. Still, Sony’s watch is the cheaper of the two, and while the unit itself is bigger, it’s overall less bulky thanks to the smaller watch strap. Nonetheless, there’s a long way to go before accessories like the Sony SmartWatch break into the mainstream.

Patent Bolt uncovered Samsung’s flexible display patent, designed to be used in products coming in 2013. It shows several uses for the technology, most notably indicating that it could be worked into smaller gadgets. One example shows a display that could be rolled up like a papyrus scroll, while another suggests screens that could be folded to the point where they mimic books.

In terms of material used, the screens are expected to use a plastic substrate, or extremely thin glass, depending on the intended gadget. It can also be applied to a wide variety of different screen technologies, included AMOLED and traditional LCDs. The intended gadget recipients range from smartphones (naturally), MP3 players, PC monitors, as well as laptops.

Samsung have demoed the tech in action in the past, which included a foldable AMOLED screen concept which had no seam. Nokia have also shown off a variant of the technology with their Kinect Labs concept phone back at Nokia World in October.

Organic Light Emitting Diodes are at work here, otherwise known as OLED lights, and what you’ve got going on is a set of pieces of hardware that are so tiny that they can all be transparent, and activated can create several layered effects for mixed colors. Four small red OLED plates are aligned next to one another in the Audi Q7, with then eight flat segments making up the curved yellow strip to display the turn indicator. Have a peek at this video before you start to process this amalgamation too hard:

What a masterpiece, yes? As Berlitz explains, Audi is working with OLED technology because it’s able to combine “maximum precision” with “high-end technology” for a wholly “super design.” Follow along with this all if you do so dare:

“These are individual points of light that need additional optical devices – reflectors, optical conductors or scatter optics. OLED surfaces are themselves the source of light, and the thin plates also look attractive. They weigh little, light up extremely fast, develop only a small amount of heat, last for several tens of thousand hours and don’t consume any more energy than conventional light-emitting diodes.” – Berlitz

We’ll be continuing to follow along with Audi’s seemingly other-worldly ability to decorate their vehicles into the future for quite a long time, we suspect. With the oncoming of the massively bright future, light displays like this are sure to be popping up on vehicles from here to Tokyo in the next 5 to 10 years – just you watch!

Also be sure to keep your eyes on Audi for their collaborative efforts with the chipmakers known as NVIDIA for Audi vehicles with Tegra 3 quad-core processors with 4-PLUS-1 technology embedded in the near future. What we’ve seen thus far is impressive – and the final product can only get better from here.

[via Euro Car News]

According to the SMD exec, exactly how flexible the displays end up being will be a matter of the substrate selected, among other things. Although the dream of bendable screens has been a pull-out panel that can offer both a large viewing area and a small gadget size, there are also potential implementations in devices that have wraparound panels or touchscreens that contort to suit the shape of a device.

In fact, Samsung has already experimented with curved screens, with its so-called Contour Display technology as seen on the Galaxy Nexus. That has a slight bend to the lower portion of the screen, intending it to be more easily used with a single hand.

However, what we’d really like to see is something like Nokia’s GEM concept, a phone clad entirely in touch-sensitive display panels, or indeed a production version of Samsung’s own folding MID concept from earlier last year. The company has been pushing the envelope with AMOLED screen sizes in recent months, such as the huge Galaxy Note, and is expected to use another large panel for the upcoming Samsung Galaxy S III.

[via OLED-Display]