E Ink Announces Pearl: Next Generation eBook Reader Display Platform

Display developer E Ink has updated its electronic ePaper display technology with a new version that reportedly offers a 50% greater contrast ratio and a better reading experience than with current products.
 
The Pearl builds on the current generation of two-pigment Vizplex designs used in most eReader devices today.  By increasing the contact, it provides crisper images and text, as well as an improved differentiation between the background and each of the characters on the screen.  The result is a move from a contrast ratio typical of newspapers, to a higher contrast ratio typical of paperback books. The 16 gray level depth of the Pearl also presents sharper rendering of images and allows product developers to display images with smooth tones and rich detail, said E Ink.
 
The use of electrophoretic displays, like the Pearl, is growing at a steady pace, according to DisplaySearch forecasts.  The current market value of $837 million is expected to grow by 44 percent in 2011, reaching $1.2 billion,” notes the research company.
 
"E Ink Pearl enables further adoption with a next generation product that is a more lightweight and eco-friendly product than ordinary paper, with less eye strain and longer battery life than an LCD," adds Felix Ho Chairman of E Ink.
 
Pearl maintains the low power characteristics of E Ink’s earlier screen products, which is a key feature in the eReader market to extend battery life.  E Ink is completely bi-stable, requiring no power to hold an image or page of text, and can in fact maintain that image for months, the company claims.  Central to this are power management facilities built into the chips and display driver integrated circuits, developed by such companies as Epson, Freescale, Marvell and Texas Instruments that support the Pearl platform.
 
Founded in 1992, E Ink is a leading provider of eReader and ePaper display technology.  More information on the technology is available from the company's Web site.

Source:BusinessWire

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