"Reaction [beta]"
Mobile phones get all bendy 17 Aug 2007
Yanko Design on Roman Kriheli's "Soft Phone" concept:
"The phone is encased in a flexible plastic housing. A soft polymer insert is located between the microchip module and the casing. You can drop it, bend it, sit on it, toss it around, and give it to Naomi Campbell to throw at her assistant without detriment.
"A flexible display (a 2,75-in. diagonal, a 433 x 266 pixels) and the keys are located on the surface. The display itself looks like paper, but the ink incorporated in it can change its position when affected by electric signals. This process called "electrowetting" is so quick that you can even display video. And it's not a fairytale technology either. The display was developed by Robert Hayes and Johan Feenstra. They better patent that ASAP."
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5 comments so far
SEO 17 Aug 2007 11:15 AM
I read about the same/similar technology being applied to newspapers (can't find the link) which would cut paper costs dramatically.
The "newspaper" could download the latest news via Wi-Fi or Bluetooth leaving you with the same newspaper but always fresh content. It would also have better durability then a current newspaper, as it can be manipulated the same way however it's waterproof.
They said it would be so cheap to make, it could be included free with a 12 month newspaper subscription.
Technology is certainly changing.
BTW, i love the wierd & whacky stuff Etre serves up every day, keep up the good work.
Carly,
Simon 17 Aug 2007 04:01 PM
Carly: Wow, the newspaper concept sounds interesting (a lot better than the portable PDF readers that are around today).
Thanks for your kind words btw :-)
SEO 20 Aug 2007 10:54 AM
No probs :)
I just done a quick search and found a good article explaining the E-Ink technology. Also appears the are experimenting with video, instead of just static images as well as things like updating stock market info and also user preferences.
http://tech.monstersandcritics.com/features/article_1095798.php/Belgian_newspaper_to_become_first_paperless_daily
If you do a search for "Electronic newspaper" there's some good info, and pics on Google Images.
I reckon in 10 years we'll have full color animated ones... I want one!
Carly,
Simon 20 Aug 2007 02:15 PM
Carly: Thanks for the link. Those prototypes sound amazing. I love how you can annotate the stories using a special marker and the contextual advertising idea ("Coffee and cereals in the morning, beer and snacks in the evening") is pretty interesting too :-)
SEO 21 Aug 2007 06:02 PM
The good thing is they are in trial use, and before long they will become mainstream. With the tonnes of paper needed to create newspapers, it's a great step forward.
Sorry about the massive stretchy link :)
Carly,