Story of the gorgeous …!!!

A BRIEFER HISTORY OF TIME.

The first array of commercially available display technology was introduced back in 1922. Those were CRT (Cathode Ray Tube) monochrome displays, which were primarily used for black and white television displays and as a display for the oscilloscope. In 1954, after a decade of trials and experiments, the first commercial colour CRT was introduced. Since then, it was the predominant displaying technology for almost another half a century. With the dawn of the new millennia came the LCD (Liquid Crystal Display) and replaced the CRT displays from its half century-long run, as the most popular display technology.

Thereafter, a vast array of display technologies likes LED (Light Emitting Diode) displays, OLED (Organic Light Emitting Diode), and AMOLED (Active Matrix OLED), etc., came into existence. Here, LED displays are a technological advancement of LCDs. Basically, the only difference between these two is that the LED displays employ a LED backlight to power up the LCD panel, whereas Cold Cathode Fluorescent Lights (CCFLs) are used as a back-light in LCD displays.

Generally, there are three different types of LED monitors available, based on the way the diodes are arranged in the monitor. These are Direct LEDs, Edge LEDs, and RGB LEDs. Edge Lit LED displays are by far, the most commonly avail¬able type out of the three. They can be made insanely thinner, but the catch is that the uniformity of the display will be broken. For an instance, if you put up all white background on such a display, the edges of the display would appear to be brighter than the rest of it. For a while, it was believed that there won’t be much of a hope in the Edge Lit LED displays department due to those issues, but with the cutting-edge research, according to the majority of industrial experts, it is the most promising out of the three.

Instead of being similar technologies, there were some improvements in the LED displays like increased contrast, better colour accuracy, and wider viewing angles. Thanks to the above qualities of LED displays manufacturers and resellers were able to attract a relatively higher price tag than that of a LCD display. And still, some experts on the field call both LED and LCD screens as ‘LCD screens’ due to their similarities. In good old LCD displays, if the viewing angle is wider than 30° from the centre, then the contrast ratio of the image is diminished, giving a washed away appearance in the display. LED displays solved this washed away appearance up to some extent.

OLED
There are 2 main families of OLED: those based on small molecules and those based on employing polymers. Also, they have two addressing schemes: Passive – Matrix (PMOLED) and Active-Matrix (AMOLED). An OLED display works with¬out using the service of a backlight and thus sporting deeper black levels (which enhances the contrast and is one of the most important factors in determining the quality of a screen) and can be thinner than a LCD. Manufacturing an OLED display is said to be a tough process. Companies like LG has achieved success in the mass production of OLEDs with bigger displays (as in 65-inch TV screens), thus making them luxurious consumer products. As an example, ‘LG OLEDB6P’: a 65-inch OLED television costs about $3497 per unit. Companies like Samsung has mas¬tered the mass production of AMOLED displays in the last couple of years for devices with relatively smaller screens (like smartphones and tabs). For instance, Super AMOLED (brand name of Samsung) displays are being used in high-resolution devices like Samsung Galaxy S8 and S8+.

CURRENT TRENDS…
We are living in an era where display technologies are constantly changing. There are so many technology trends to the extent, that it is difficult to keep track of those technologies. Most of the technologies that will be discussed next are just gimmicks for now, on the other hand, some of those technologies show a lot of promise in their respective areas.

High-Resolution Displays: Using high-resolution displays is one such trend. The pixel density of a display can be given in PPI (Pixels per Inch). When it comes to choosing a smart phone, one of the most deal-breaking features is its display. That is why when unveiling iPhone 4, Steve Jobs emphasized that the number of pixels needed for a Retina display (brand name of Apple) is about 300 PPI for a device that is held 10 to 12 inches from the eye. Basically, those displays will boast about screens with pixels so small, that the pixels are not visible to the naked eye. Nowadays, the intense competition and marketing purposes have driven that threshold up to a point in latest smartphones, where you actually need a mini microscope, if you need to observe a pixel in those displays. For an instance, Sony Xperia Z5 Premium’s 5.5 inch 4K display’s pixel density of 802ppi mocks the Jobs’s 300ppi bar. According to most experts, it was an overkill of resources and all those extra pixels require power to light up, which would impact on phone’s battery life. In the TV and projector departments, 4K (UHD) and 8K display sizes are available. (8K: 4,320×7,680 screens are long way from being a mainstream).

Curved Screens and VR: Curved Screens are also a new trend in the industry. Especially, the latest smartphone, television and vehicle manufacturers have used curved displays. Smartphones of Samsung and LG have included these curved screens for their smartphones. For example, almost all the Samsung flagship smartphones sports double-edged curved screens.

DisplayMate is a company well-known for its comprehensive tests that determine the quality of smart phone displays. According to them, the double-edged display of Galaxy S8 and S8+ has the best smart phone display out there, overtaking its Galaxy S7 siblings (Galaxy S7 and Galaxy S7 Edge).

Virtual Reality is another field where companies like Samsung have been boasting new products. Samsung Gear VR, HTC Vive, Oculus Rift, Sony PlayStation VR, LG 360 VR are some of the most advertised VR sets. Those devices would let you into the virtual 3D world of its own.

Wearable Industry: Including displays in wearable applications such as fitness bands and smartwatches has become a new trend at present. Apple, Pebble, Samsung, Sony and Tag are few such companies who have already ventured into the smartwatch niche, while many other companies like Fitbit, Garmin and Misfits have taken the control over fitness bands markets.

Haptic-Enabled: Haptic-enabled displays are another category which made a huge progress in the last couple of years. Haptic technology allows digital devices to provide physical feedback when we interact with them; via touch, through vibrations, force or other motions. This is one of the most used features in today’s mobile devices. iPhone 6s introduced 3D Touch (brand name), where, the iPhone senses how much pressure you apply on the dis¬play, and responds accordingly.

Stylus: This is more of an accessory for displays. The first use of a stylus in a computing device was the Styalator, demonstrated by Tom Dimond in 1957. In 2011, Samsung Galaxy Note came with a stylus (basically a pen that can write on the screen). Such devices have allured the smartphone users who missed the use of pen and paper (here screen) for note taking, drawing, etc.

QD and Flexible Display: One of the most interesting research fields in the display industry is the screens which comprise of Quantum Dots (QD). QDs or semiconductor nanocrystals are a central theme in nanotechnology and could provide an alternative for commercial display technology. One final notable mention is the flexible and foldable displays. In CES (Consumer Electronics Show) 2011, Samsung Electronics announced the development of a 4.5-inch prototype and they showcased one such prototype. At 2013 CES, Samsung presented “Youm” – concept prototypes for smartphones that incorporated flexible displays.

Display technologies have come a long way since its inception of being a paltry monochrome screen to boasting a whopping 802ppi – 4K display in a tiny 5.5-inch screen real estate of a smartphone. It has gained the centre of attraction of the consumer by invading almost every nook and corner of a tech gadget.

(This is an updated version of the article that was initially published in the Gauge Newsletter titled Displaying Technology: A walk through) (gaugeuop.com)