The company that designs the 6 inch ePaper displays used on Kindle and NOOK eReaders is thinking big. E Ink is introducing a 42 inch display for digital signage applications.
Last year, at CES 2016, E Ink showed off a digital signage system made of 4 separate panels. The new panels are even larger, which could make it easier to create a display using just a single screen… or a really big multi-display sign.
The screens aren’t just for use in signs though. One of the first products expected to ship with a 42 inch E Ink Pearl display is a “Connected eWriter.”
The upcoming QuirkLogic Quilla is expected to be a large writing slate that’s described as a “portable collaboration tool that writes just like paper.”
Just don’t expect to see a 42 inch Kindle anytime soon.
E Ink’s new large-format display has a 4:3 aspect ratio and a resolution of 2880 x 2160 pixels. It measures 35″ x 26″ and the screen is just 0.65 inches (1.64mm) thick.
Like all E Ink screens, the display can show an image indefinitely without power. Electricity is only required when the image changes. So you could create a restaurant menu, bus schedule, or sale price list and it will stay visible even if you unplug the sign. The grayscale screen is also visible with ambient light, which means you don’t need a backlight or other illumination to see it, and the viewing angles are wide, allowing you to read the display even if you’re not directly in front of it.
