New York Times: The 200C has zero buttons. Jason Monroe, a spokesperson for Chrysler, valiantly claimed that the company’s four-door electric car, the 200C, has zero buttons: “You won’t see a single button on this vehicle from the doors to the interior to the infotainment system.” Natron Corporation owns the technology behind the zero-button human-interface design. Apple uses the technology too.
The iQ Power integrates a touch screen system where the driver touch and drags a virtual trackball and control music (a slightly different rendition of Apple’s Cover Flow), GPS, etc. I don’t know how it is done but the settings media library in the 200C is saved into your smartphone.
The smartphone that you have can be used as a virtual key fob to control a lot of functions via the iQ Power system on the 200C. What can you control? Locks, windows, access to live interior shot, home security status, detectors (CO2 and smoke), etc. The Chrysler 200C is expected in showrooms in 2012, if the company survives that long.
Zune HD (Preliminary) Specifications
Display: OLED with Multitouch
Aspect Ratio: 16:9
Connectivity: Mini HDMI, WiFi, Bluetooth
Storage: 16GB/32GB
OS: Windows Mobile 7
Other: HD Radio, 3D Xbox Game Support (?)
Availability: September 2009 in the US, Canada, UK, France
HD? So what’s the HD about the new Zune HD? It can play HD media from the Zune Marketplace. It also receives signals from HD Radio. Will the OLED screen be HD?
OLED Not HD Most likely not as that will require at least a 1280 x 720 pixel format on a screen that’ll be 4″ or less. Quite a bit less. Tave a close look at the picture and you’ll see massive borders around the display. Those would make the actual size of the OLED display much smaller than the physical unit. Unfortunate. So 3.5″ is probably about the size of the OLED and in terms of pixel format it will be way less than 1280 x 720 in landscape mode.
Windows Mobile 7 There are rumors that Windows 7 (not the mobile version) will be out later this year and so it might be true that Windows Mobile 7 will come out at the same time. If Microsoft can pull that off, that would be impressive.
Source: Zunited
DigiTimes is reporting that AU Optronics (AUO) and Chi Mei Optoelectronics (CMO), the two largest LCD manufacturers in Taiwan, are expecting small/medium LCD shipments to increase in the second quarter of 2009 (Q2’09). AUO is forecasting that its small/medium LCD panel shipments will increase 30% quarter over quarter (Q/Q) while CMO is expecting a more modest increase of 5-10% Q/Q. CMO’s expectations are less aggressive partly due to having already experienced a strong Q1’09. (more…)
Luxeed’s U5 is a LED keyboard that’s programmable with multi-colored LED-lit keys. OS support is quite broad: Windows, Linux and OS X. The nifty lighting can be used for instance to learn and practice how to type. The typing program can light up certain keys used as visual cues. (more…)
Deanne Cheuk, an artist and designer, has been commissioned by American Express, Nike, Swatch, Target, MTV and The New York Times Magazines for her illustrations and art direction. Deanne is known for neomu: “neomu is the graphical progression of mu magazine. The smallest magazine in the world. No words, no advertising, just inspirational images, photographs and graphics.”
Now, Dell has commissioned her. In Dell’s new Design Studio you can apply some of Deanne’s amazing artwork on the back of the Studio 15 and Studio 17 notebooks. My favorite designs are “Lovers in Noon”, “Lovers in Night”, and “Lovers in Morning”. I have an appreciation for black and white art, designs and photographs. Very classy move from Dell.
Mistake The post about Samsung’s 23″ OLED monitor prototype that featured on megawhat.tv seems to be the result of a mistaken identity. Unfortunate: I was getting quite excited there for a second. There are many reasons for why the 23″ OLED monitor is most likely a 23″ LCD monitor with a LED backlight. The reasons are:
Ron at OLED-Info picked up on these clues. The 23″ OLED monitor is probably Samsung’s P2370L. The P2370L also has a dynamic contrast ratio of 2,000,000:1, sports a LED backlight and is 1.65cm thick.
Dell‘s S2209W is a nice-looking 22″ LCD monitor. The TFT LCD panel is actually 21.5″ and sports a 1920 x 1080 pixel format. The S2209W had an initial MSRP of US$239 that subsequently dropped to $199. But Dell is taking an additional $60 off, so you can get a 22″ LCD monitor that is 1080p-capable for just US$139. Shipped! (Of course, if you live in California like I do you’ll need to pay an environmental tax.) Act fast as this is quite a price!
Source: Dell
Samsung LN22B650 Specifications
Display: 21.5″ TFT LCD
Aspect Ratio: 16:9
Pixel Format: 1366 x 768
Contrast Ratio: 15000:1 (dynamic)
Response Time: 5ms
Frequency: 60Hz
Sound: 3W x2
Connectivity: HDMI, Composite, Component, VGA
Tuner: ATSC
Dimensions:
21.3 x 14.3 x 15.9″ (w/stand)
21.3 x 13.8 x 2.5″ (w/o stand)
Weight: 11.2lbs (w/stand), 10.6lbs (w/o stand)
Price: MSRP US$469.99
Nice Design Samsung‘s LN22B650 is a 22″ LCD TV. The actual size of the TFT LCD is 21.5″ and it sports a 1366 x 768 pixel format good for 720p HD content–not 1080p. The response time is an average at 5ms. The high 15000:1 dynamic contrast ratio does not mean much since it doesn’t have a LED backlight with local dimming. Static contrast ratio is what you should look for but it isn’t stated on Samsung’s site. In terms of external styling, the LN22B650 looks quite nice with its Touch of Color design theme. In this case the color is black. (more…)
PeeWee PC Pivot Tablet Laptop Specifications
Display: 8.9″ Touch TFT LCD
Pixel Format: 1024 x 600
CPU: 1.6GHz Intel Atom N270
RAM: 1GB (max 2GB)
HDD: 60GB Hard Disk
Storage: 2-in-1 Memory Card Reader (SD/MMC)
Webcam: 1.3 Megapixel (rotates 180 degrees)
Connectivity: 10/100 Ethernet, WiFi BGN, USB (2), VGA
Operating System: Windows XP Home
Battery: 6-cell Lithium Ion battery
Dimensions: 9.5 x 7.5 x 1.5″
Weight: 3lbs
Price: US$599.99
PeeWee PC’s Pivot Tablet Laptop weighs 3 pounds, is water resistant, drop resistant, has a carry handle and a 8.9″ touch LCD. The Pivot Tablet Laptop is powered by Intel’s Atom N270 running at 1.6GHz (so it’s a netbook). (more…)
OLED MONITOR! A video of Samsung’s 23″ OLED monitor prototype! It will be commercially available in 2010 and features a 2,000,000:1 contrast ratio and is just 1.6cm (that’s just 0.6-inch) thick. The 23″ OLED monitor sports DVI and HDMI connections and consumes 40% less power than a comparable 23″ LCD monitor. Now that will save you some money in your monthly electricity bill. It’s also very light. No word on what pixel format it is but I would guess that it would be 1920 x 1080. The price wasn’t mentioned either but I’m guessing it will be quite expensive.
Source: megawhat.tv
DisplayBlog is written and produced by Jin Kim. Subscribe via RSS.