Hisense’s “Transparent 3D” display technology creates the crazy effect of incorporating real-life objects into a video image. The 40-inch demo unit, in the image above, could be how you window-shop in the future. It’s so cool looking. I only wish there was something better to do with it. More »
Microsoft just demonstrated an interesting Xbox display accessory at the Samsung CES keynote that apparently fills up the room with images and lights beyond the confines of a television screen. We were shown a video of someone playing Xbox games and making it seem like it’s snowing in the room, for example. It’s unclear how the technology is being implemented, but we were promised it wasn’t just video tricks and was indeed a video of a lab demo. We’ll try to suss out the details for more.
Developing
Filed under: Displays, Home Entertainment, HD, Samsung, Microsoft
Microsoft just demonstrated an interesting Xbox display accessory at the Samsung CES keynote that apparently fills up the room with images and lights beyond the confines of a television screen. We were shown a video of someone playing Xbox games and making it seem like it’s snowing in the room, for example. It’s unclear how the technology is being implemented, but we were promised it wasn’t just video tricks and was indeed a video of a lab demo. We’ll try to suss out the details for more.
Developing…
Continue reading Microsoft and Samsung demo Xbox display, fills room with images
Filed under: Displays, Home Entertainment, HD, Samsung, Microsoft
Microsoft just demonstrated an interesting display technology called Illumiroom at the Samsung CES keynote that apparently fills up the room with images and lights beyond the confines of a television screen. We were shown a video of someone playing Xbox games and making it seem like it’s snowing in the room, for example. It’s unclear how the technology is being implemented, but we were promised it wasn’t just video tricks and was indeed a video of a lab demo. We’ll try to suss out the details for more.
Update: It’s actually a Microsoft Research project that uses a Kinect for a Windows camera combined with a projector. It apparently “uses the appearance and the geometry of the room (captured by Kinect) to adapt the projected visuals in real-time without any need to custom pre-process the graphics.” Sure it’s still in the prototype stage, but color us intrigued. We’ll be sure to follow up with the Redmond giant to see if we can get a bit more up close and personal with this. Stay tuned.
Continue reading Microsoft and Samsung demo Illumiroom display, fills room with images (video)
Filed under: Displays, Home Entertainment, HD, Samsung, Microsoft
Source: Microsoft Research, Technet
Samsung wasn’t done with CES. During its second CES event, it just announced that it will brand its new series of flexible OLED displays Youm. Better still, the company brought on a handheld prototype that was all sorts of flexible. We then got a glimpse of a quick concept video where what appeared to be a phone proceeded to fold out to transform into a tablet. The prototype Youm device also had a screen that stretched beyond the front of the device, meaning that you’ll be able to see notifications and widget content even when the device is laid down flat.
Gallery: Samsung Youm flexible OLED
Archos first announced its TV Connect ahead of CES 2013, which detailed a two-device approach to bringing the Android experience to televisions. On one end is an HD camera mounted either to the top of your television or set up as a stand, and at the other end is an enormous remote control — what Archos is calling the “TV Touch remote.” The camera end of things also contains a 1.5GHz “multi-core” CPU, 1GB of RAM and 8GB of expandable storage, all of which powers the experience. Sadly, with a mess of WiFi signals and Bluetooth devices at the Las Vegas Convention Center (TV Connect included), navigating TV Connect’s Android 4.1.1 Jelly Bean interface could only be done via physical buttons — the TV Touch remote is otherwise advertised to interact with the camera by placing a cursor on screen, navigable by physically pointing the giant remote at your screen.
In our hands-on time, not only was the cursor bugging out, but the Bluetooth connection dropped altogether at one point. It’s possible that this was just a measure of the demo area’s constraints, of course; we’re reserving judgment until we can test it in our own homes. When it was working, it operated like you’d expect Android to operate. We were able to jump quickly from Google Maps to a game just as easily as you would on any standard Android device, albeit on the big screen. And that’s quite a promising concept — pushing not only apps like YouTube and Netflix to the TV, but more importantly, Google’s Play store. That means games (controllable with the TV Touch remote), media, and more. Whether it’s as exciting as it sounds remains to be seen, but we’ll be sure to find out before it arrives at retail this February for $130. Take a peek at TV Connect in use in our hands-on video, just below.
Gallery: Archos TV Connect @ CES 2013
Continue reading Hands-on with Archos TV Connect (video)
Filed under: Displays, Gaming, Home Entertainment, Household, Peripherals, HD
The majority of Sharp’s area on the CES show floor is taken up by its 2013 consumer AQUOS range, but hidden in dark corners are tech demos, concept panels, and ridiculously priced displays. One demonstration set is split into two sections, comparing the company’s next-gen Quattron yellow sub-pixel technology with the current generation. Did the color’s look great? For sure. Did it look like the current-gen Quattron had been made intentionally low quality? Definitely. The two-faced demo TV also had the glare-reducing Moth-Eye technology on board, as did a 70-inch UHDTV concept model which a Sharp rep called “just an exercise in engineering.” It wasn’t exactly gasp-inducing, but the anti-reflective tech was certainly working. Finally, hidden behind a curtain and crammed into a small pitch-black room (literally) were a bunch of Sharp’s “Integrated Cognitive Creation” (ICC) 60-inch 4K LCDs. The hook of the ICC PURIOS is that it upscales 1080p to 4K, and will do so for only $25,000 – $30,000 when it launches in the US this summer. We couldn’t really tell the difference between the HD and 4K pictures, but maybe we should’ve brought a microscope for a more thorough analysis.
When you’re surrounded by huge 4K TVs cranked to retina-damaging brightness, it’s easy to get desensitized to the high resolution. But, when you are standing in front of a 32-inch monitor (31.5-inch to be exact) at that same resolution, it’s a whole different story. In the gargantuan halls of CES, Sharp is showing off the 4K-resolution low-power IGZO LCD panels it announced November last year. They had two touchscreen versions on show — one for Windows 7 and another for Windows 8 — as well as one non-touch model. The touch versions were also slightly different in that you can lie them horizontally if you need to. Honestly, the resolution and color reproduction on the panels were absolutely incredible. They looked so good, in fact, that I fantasized about tearing it from the table and making a break for it, if only for a second.
That’s the only way I could end up “owning” one, as the non-touch model will be “at least” $5500 when it launches in February, and the touch models will be “at least” $1000 more when they arrive sometime in Q2. They aren’t really intended for general consumption, anyway, but for the medical sector, serious design pros and other commercial uses. The pics we got of them can be found in the gallery below, but unfortunately, it was hard to do the displays justice in the crowded, dimly lit Sharp den.
Gallery: Sharp 32-inch 4K IGZO LCD monitors
Moments ago, at a small press event, Raj Talluri, Qualcomm’s VP of Product Management dropped this little nugget. “You are just starting to see 1080p display phones. I think that will go even higher.” My brain instantly exploded. More »
You know what’s wrong with most TVs? The fact that you can’t draw on them, right? Well as we learned this morning, Panasonic has developed its own solution to the problem with the newly announced Touch Pen and we managed to get hand(s) on. The wireless pen allows you to draw directly onto compatible Panasonic TVs, annotate, draw, whatever takes your fancy, and then share these images via a range of different connectivity options (via a paired tablet and Panasonic’s Viera Remote 2.0 app, or save to USB etc). Panasonic was keen to point out that, unlike existing solutions, the Touch Pen doesn’t need any extra hardware, just the TV and the device itself. The actual hardware part is somewhat large, but not cumbersome, and it’s pretty clear that this was designed to be comfortable for most hands, yet durable, particularly suitable for children. This comes as no surprise considering that the pen is also effectively a HID device, doubling as a stylus for input and game control. While we were at the booth we loaded up a simple game, and used the pen to control the penguins on the ice, much like flicking angry birds on a phone.
In actual use, if you are watching something and you have a sudden burst of inspiration, all you need to do is hold the pen to the screen, and after a short wait the TV grabs a shot of the screen, much like taking a screenshot on a smartphone. With the picture snagged, a simple art interface comes up, with options for colors, pen types, undo, save and so on. We spent a few moments amusing ourselves by adding comedy facial accoutrements to the onscreen protagonist. We can definitely see that this would be a fun novelty for home use, of particular interest to kids. There is also potential for some simple business use too. Whichever case use appeals most to you, over all it’s just another input option, and if you’re like us, that’s always a welcome addition. Once again, Panasonic were tight-lipped on when we might see this, and for how much, but don’t be surprised if you see this pop back up some time around summer.
Sean Cooper and Steve Dent contributed to this report.
Filed under: Displays, Peripherals
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