This new technology uses low priced and widely available plastics as the main component, but is unique in that there are polymers on the surface of the plastic that can be charged to emit light. This results in no need for backlighting, and thus significantly reduced power consumption. They need little power and no backlight, can be read at almost any angle, and are cheap to make. The Cambridge Display Technology research labs opened this week, a partial spin-off with affiliation to Cambridge University, and the new CDT technology immediately received a major boost. Apparently Epson was able to produce the screens in a simple ink-jet printer.
Cost is a potential major advantage of the new display technology.
Currently, the cost of high quality LCD displays is one of the major factors in driving laptop price up. McCaughan said he expects manufacturers licensing the technology to produce significant volumes of screens by 2002 and to capture up to a fifth of the LCD market by 2004. While the laptop market is certainly a future target, supplying displays for the booming mobile phone industry is a more immediate goal. CDT has signed deals with Seiko and Phillips, two of the largest produces of mobile phone displays. CDT said its screens will make color video affordable on the next generation of mobile wireless gadgets.