Mirasol: A New-Generation Screen

UPDATE 24/01/2012: after trying out three e-readers with Mirasol screens at CES 2012, we’ve updated this article with photos, a video and our first impressions of Qualcomm’s new screen technology and its potential for success.

Qualcomm has made mobile tech innovation its favourite hobby. A few months ago, the firm's in-house engineers set their minds on the e-book reader, a market that's exploding right now. Qualcomm showed us a prototype e-reader screen at the last Mobile World Congress. Known as 'Mirasol' the screen uses a reflected image rather than a backlit image, which is supposed to be easier for the human eye to read. The technology is due to be rolled out in partnership with an electronic book manufacturer before the end of 2010.

So what should we be expecting? What more does Mirasol have to offer than a screen based on the e-ink technology used in Amazon's Kindle and others? Halfway between a standard e-reader display and the kind of screen used in touchscreen tablets, let's take a closer look at Qualcomm's latest creation.



We've said it before and we'll say it again—in spite of encouraging forecasts by analysts, there are still two major factors putting a brake on e-book reader sales. On the one hand, although e-ink technology gives good readability and doesn't tire your eyes, it doesn't support colour or video. On the other, the lack of available reading material (new titles!) and high sales prices don't help. While availability won't change overnight, the limitations of e-ink technology could well do so. In fact, black and white text could be replaced by colour content very soon.

Natural Light Creates Colour

By 2011, a new generation of e-readers should be with us. The firm behind E-ink announced last spring that it was working actively on a colour version of its technology. Qualcomm is also advancing rapidly in the field with a type of technology that's supposed to 'make reader devices more convergent, like mobile phones and tablets' according to Qualcomm marketing manager Cheryl Goodman. The company has already signed a deal with an e-reader manufacturer, she confirms, as 'a contract has been signed with an e-reader manufacturer. This e-reader will be here in the course of the last quarter of 2010'.

For the time being, we're not allowed to know which manufacturer is behind the new device. Although some suspect Amazon, it's difficult to be sure given the number of players currently working in this market (Sony, Bookeen, Samsung, Barnes & Noble and so on).

How does Mirasol work? The technology developed by Qualcomm is inspired by a natural phenomenon, interferometry, visible in particular in diurnal butterflies. Mirasol technology uses light, which is reflected in microscopic mirrors to create colour. This process works both in artificial and natural light, but you'll need a a stand-by light to hand to view a Mirasol screen in the dark. Response times have been announced at 10 to 15 ms.



Like e-ink technology, Mirasol is very energy efficient and very comfortable to read, even in full sunlight, like screens based on Pixel QI developed mainly for laptops (still not on sale except as a kit that you have to mount yourself and at an unreasonable price!). One of the most visible drawbacks of the Mirasol screen however, is that the white isn't very bright (but greyish) and the colours are slightly iridescent.

Video Playback

The Mirasol screen also promises colour video at 30 fps. While from a purely publishing point of view, this may be of limited interest, for the online press there's a definite appeal here. At a time when certain magazines and e-magazines have shown their appetite (voluntary or otherwise) for multimedia formats (see the Wired iPad app, for example), it would be no surprise to see the arrival of a virtual news kiosk once the choice of available content improves in terms of design and adaptation to new devices. We tested various titles on the Amazon Kindle but were only half-convinced due to the poorly adapted page layouts.




With the arrival of colour, video, web access worthy of the name, and battery life at least as long as current e-book readers, that could all be set to change.

Of course, any new device will have to find a place among the plethora of touchscreen tablets on their way, and compete with all their dedicated media apps! The biggest competitor for the e-reader is, of course, the connected tablet, with multimedia capabilities that more than make up for the fact that the backlit LCD screen rapidly tires the eyes.

Mirasol on Smartphones by 2013

Although the success of the technology is still far from sealed, Qualcomm already foresees the use of Mirasol screens in other mobile devices, with smartphones the number one target. Though easier-to-read in full-sunlight, would a smartphone without a bright, backlit LCD screen be just as pleasing to the eye for videos, web browsing and photo slideshows? In terms of what we've seen, the Mirasol screen still has some way to go on that front. The same goes for roll-out to tablets—although the Mirasol demo we saw was with a 5.7-inch screen, Qualcomm says it can't be sure it'll be able to bring out larger screens ... not for the moment, in any case.

CES 2012: Mirasol Screens Up-Close

At CES 2012, Qualcomm presented three e-readers equipped with Mirasol screens. Although the three devices were made by different manufacturers, they all used exactly the same 5.7'' screen (compared with 6’’ for most current e-ink e-book readers). Note that for the moment, these products are only due to sell in Asian markets (South Korea and China).

Estimated retail price for colour e-book readers: approx. $300 (£200).
Black and white models are two to three times cheaper!

The pictures below from our hands-on with the Hanvon e-reader give a pretty good idea of the kind of picture quality and contrast we can expect from this first generation of colour e-reader devices.

 

With the Mirasol screen, black is obtained by limiting the reflection of surrounding light to the lowest possible level. It’s therefore not too surprising (although you never know!) to see blacks looking a little on the grey side on this screen. The black isn’t as deep as a black printed on paper, in any case.

Although images do lack contrast as a result, even with this level of picture quality, we prefer the more subtle, detailed colour shading in the Mirasol screen to the chunky grey block shading seen in current e-book readers. If the black and white and colour readers sold at the same price (which they don’t), we’d definitely pick the colour option … although preferably not one of these first-generation models. These Android-based devices are surprisingly slow to say that they run on 1 GHz Qualcomm Snapdragon processors. Could that be a sign that Mirasol uses a lot of processing power? Plus, in video mode—another key selling point for colour e-reader screens—it was difficult to be all that impressed. Don't get us wrong—it’s certainly impressive to see colour video on a non-LCD screen—but the demo videos we saw were full of glitches, jumps and weren’t all that accurate.

Qualcomm claims that the Mirasol screen can reproduce something in the region of 32,000 colours. Although that’s pretty difficult to check without using lab tests, and tricky to evaluate on a trade show stand with spotlights shining on every device, colour shading was effectively reproduced on the screen. In fact, colour transitions were much smoother than we could have imagined, even if the colours look pretty dull overall due to the relatively low contrast.

Onscreen colours can be made to look brighter (when light in the surrounding environment starts to drop, for example) by activating optional lighting function around the edges of the screen. You can see the difference that makes in the video below, as the Qualcomm rep switches from one mode to another. Using the lighting will wear the battery down more quickly, however.

Battery life is quoted at three weeks with the backlighting off, which is similar to a black and white e-reader. Without the backlighting then, the Mirasol device is just as energy efficient as current e-book readers.

While Qualcomm hopes to roll this screen technology out into smartphones from next year, we can only hope that by then it’ll be a new, more advanced version of Mirasol. The screen’s low-power use is clearly an advantage, but if picture quality is affected, the buying public isn’t likely to play ball.

We hope that colour reproduction will improve, as Mirasol e-reader screens could be particularly appealing for readers of electronic comic book content. As it stands though, the Kyobo and other devices we saw at CES 2012 could have trouble rivalling touchscreen tablets, which can now be picked up for barely £100 more.

Check out the video below for more information on the Mirasol display and to see the Hanvon e-reader in action with both e-books and video content.