If you thought that the pixel density wars were going to stall after LG’s impressive
announcement last week, think again. Sharp has just showcased its first prototype displays
based on its next generation IGZO (Indium gallium zinc oxide) display technology at a press
conference event in Tokyo and the results are impressive to say the least.
The first prototypes include a pair of LCDs - one being a 4.9-inch 720 x 1280 and the other a
6.1-inch display running at a headline-grabbing 2560 x 1600 resolution with a pixel density of
498 ppi. Sharp also took the opportunity to demonstrate how the IGZO display technology would
work on OLED panels with a 13.5-inch display prototype running at an impressive 3840 x 2160
Quad Full High Definition (QFHD) resolution.
Of course, all this display goodness would be in vain if it comes at the cost of precious battery
life, but Sharp claims that as the technology is based on using even smaller thin-film transistors
than the ones currently in use, the displays will not only consume substantially less power
but will also enable narrower bezels with higher performance touchscreens. The Japanese
manufacturer, which is one of the world’s largest producers of LCD panels, has already
begun mass production of displays using IGZO display technology so expect to see select
smartphones, tablets and hopefully laptops running these displays by early next year if not
sooner.
The race for the world’s thinnest smartphone is on, but not by the names you would
expect...
Fashionistas take note - The battle for the thinnest smartphone title is hotting up with Chinese
manufacturers leading the charge.
Huawei’s Ascent P1 S, which was originally unveiled at the Consumer Electronics Show earlier
this year and incidentally just went on sale last month in Australia, originally owned the crown
for the world’s thinnest smartphone at only 6.68mm thick. Then, within a matter of months,
Chinese handset manufacturer Oppo stole the crown with their “Finder” handset measuring only
6.65mm in depth.
Now, just days before the Oppo Finder is set to go on pre-order in China, the latest contender
for the somewhat wobbly throne has stepped in and not only taken the diet friendly title, but has
also out-powered the previous contenders by a fair margin. Measuring a depth of just 6.2mm
thick, the newly teased device by Chinese manufacturer ZTE also packs a 720p IPS display, a
cortex-A15 processor, up to 64GB of internal storage and Android’s Ice Cream Sandwich.
To put this in perspective, the iPhone measures in at a comparatively waistline bursting 9.3mm,
the Samsung Galaxy S2 at 8.45mm and the Motorola Droid RAZR at 7.1mm thick.
Codenamed Athena, the device is rumoured to use Kevlar material for the back to maintain its
rigidness. It all sounds impressive, but we will have to wait for an official announcement from
ZTE to learn what features, if any, might be left behind to achieve this impressive engineering
feat.
Want to know when the Diablo III servers are up and running? There’s an app for that!
Error 37 is something that will live in the minds of many gamers and, whether Blizzard likes it or
not, has gone on to become a popular internet meme. For the benefit of non-Diablo fans, Error
37 is a message that most players were greeted with upon firing up Diablo III within the first 24
hours of the games’ release making it a frustrating experience for many.
While for the most part, the Diablo III servers have stabilised, there are no guarantees
particularly when it comes to high traffic servers. If you’re away from your computer and
planning on playing Diablo III but want to make sure the servers are up before you decide to
clear out your day, the appropriately titled “Diablo III Server checker” app for Android is what
you want.
The app allows you to select the region you’re playing from and it will give you a list of every
server along with the associated status. The app, of course, is in no way endorsed by Blizzard
(could you imagine the public reaction if it were), however, the developer Eluamous is using the
official Blizzard server status page as the data source. Eluamous is quick to point out that the
app is only the messenger as it relies on the Blizzard server status page to be accurate and up-
to-date.
You can get the Diablo III Server Checker app via the Google Play store.
