E Ink Now Has Poster-Sized Digital Signage Displays; 32″ & Color

June 2, 2014 by Dave Haynes

E Ink is at a couple of trade shows this week showing an e-Paper module  module big enough to be considered an option to LCD displays.

The new modules are 32″ diagonal, which is almost 25X the size of the display in an eReader, like a Kindle. The new display is targeted primarily at applications in the digital signage and information kiosk markets and is available in black and white and color modules.

The 32″ displays are great examples of E Ink’s innovation in the research, design and manufacturing of ePaper displays. The display has a resolution of 2560 X 1440, and measures 27.75″ by 15.75″at 94 DPI., and handles at least some color. It’s also daylight readable.

Says a news release:

The new module was developed in cooperation with Global Display Solutions (GDS), a world leader in the deployment of green display technologies for outdoor and indoor digital signage applications. GDS developed the enclosure technology for the display to be deployed in outdoor conditions with very low power consumption. GDS is a sales and marketing partner in the deployment of the ePaper displays for the digital signage market and will jointly market the product with E Ink.

“Using E Ink technology, we were able to design an outdoor display that is only a few millimeters in thickness with very low power consumption and without fan noise. We believe this product can replace existing LCD and LED displays for many applications in the digital signage market as well as open up new markets that are looking for green display technology,” said Andrea Ongaro CTO for GDS. “The E Ink 32″ electronic paper display has a large enough active area to address a large part of these markets as a single unit. It can also be seamlessly tiled together to create a much larger display system.”

“E Ink’s partnership with GDS resulted in this unique ePaper display, which is ideally suited for signage applications,” said Harit Doshi, Head of Signage Business at E Ink. “This module is one of the first milestones in bringing state-of-the-art, low power and sunlight readable products to the market.”

“E Ink has had significant focus on diversifying its presence in the display market,” said Giovanni Mancini, Head of Global Marketing at E Ink. “Digital signage is one of those focus areas. The new large-sized display meets the needs for display applications in areas such as menu boards, transportation displays and information kiosks and we believe this will be a big growth area for E Ink Holdings.”

Examples of the first-to-market 32″ B&W and Color displays will be exhibited at the E Ink booth during SID Display Week in San Diego, June 3-5 and during Computex in Taipei, June 3-7.

I am at Computex later this week and will definite try to get a first-hand look and report back my impressions. Anyone who has seen an e-reader knows it will have its limitations in digital signage applications. Refreshing pages has lag time, so the tech is miles away from video support. But for simple requirements, like posters for one-hour FLASH SALE: 2 FOR 1 offers, it’ll do just fine.

Color is also limited: Current displays offer 16 levels of grayscale and are capable of displaying 4,096 colors.

Who are these guys?

Founded in 1992 by Taiwan’s leading papermaking and printing group YFY (1907.TW), E Ink Holdings Inc. (8069.TW) is the pioneer of TFT and ePaper business in Taiwan. Its corporate philosophy aims to deliver revolutionary products, user experiences, and environmental benefits through advanced technology development. This vision has led to its continuous investments in the field of ePaper display as well as its 2008 acquisition of Hydis Technologies, manufacturer of the world’s best wide viewing angle LCDs, and its 2009 acquisition of E Ink Corporation, the worldwide leader in ePaper. Listed in Taiwan’s GreTai Securities Market and the Luxembourg market, E Ink Holdings is now the world’s largest supplier of displays to the eReader market. For corporate information, please visit www.einkgroup.com ; for EPD information, please visitwww.eink.com / tw.eink.com; and for FFS information, please visit www.hydis.com .