Portaprojectors allow you to set up a theater whereever you go, but without a suitable projection surface, your images will be dim, distorted, or otherwise difficult to view. When a smooth white wall isn’t available, a portable projection screen can come quite in handy. These instructions tell you how to make a screen quickly and inexpensively. Check out the comments section as well for addtional tips on how to improve your DIY pico-projector screen.
It’s a bit disappointing to correct this previous rumor, but it turns out that Apple’s new tablet computer, the Apple iPad, includes no pico projector. Rest assured that a number of third party projector accessory devices will allow you to use the iPad as a mobile theater/presentation factory.
We will find out officially on Wednesday when Apple holds their press event, but the latest rumor claims that the new Apple Tablet device will include a pico-projector. How’s that for an exciting possibility?
From iCurumba:
This sleek slate tablet will be powered by an Intel Atom processor and have 34nm Intel NAND flash memory embedded on the motherboard. It will offer high definition audio, video and a projector.
Version 1.0 will be available in Q2 with the Intel Atom N470 processor at 1.83 GHz, the Intel NM10 Express chipset, 2 Gigs of DDR2 memory and the embedded 80 gigabyte Intel SATA SSD.
Version 1.1 should be out by late Q4 with Intel’s Cedarview 32nm Atom processor, a DDR3 RAM memory controller and graphics core capable of HD Media. 2 gigs of DDR3 memory will give a burst to speed and graphics capabilities and the SATA SSD should grow to 120 gigs of NAND flash memory.
The AAXA M1 Micro Projector is an in-betweener: bigger than most “pico projectors”, but smaller most larger “portable projectors”. It can project an image of up to 66 lumens brightness, or up to 100 inches. It has 1GB of built-in memory and 1-watt stereo speakers.
Of course any test provided by a manufacturer is to be taken with a grain of salt, but Syndiant has posted on their blog a comparison of their SYL2041 projector chip against three other portaprojector technologies. In this test, the Syndiant chip appears brighter and clearer than its competitors.
From the Syndiant Blog:
January is an exciting time for those of us in the Consumer Electronics industry. Companies from all over the world work very hard to prepare their new technologies and products for demonstration at the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in Las Vegas. It is a great opportunity for companies such as Syndiant to get to meet with analysts, journalists, present customers, prospective customers, suppliers and value chain partners. Not counting unscheduled meetings, Syndiant had a very productive show with more than 50 meetings in 3 days.
We are very proud to be the industry leader in providing high resolution pico projectors panels, and we are rapidly forging a path to true HD pico projectors enabled by our breakthrough VueG8TM technology. The best way to emphasize our leadership, superior resolution and image quality was to demonstrate a projector with our SYL2041 simultaneously against other pico projectors display technologies. As you can see in the photos, our technology is more advanced, and we know consumers are not going to spend their hard-earned money on pico projectors that provide obsolete, 25 year old display resolutions.
Further proof of our leadership, at CES Foryou Multimedia with their development partner Astri demonstrated the world’s first pico projector to provide 1024×600 (Wide SVGA) resolution. This was made possible by Syndiant’s SYL2061 panel – the world’s only pico projector panel to support this resolution.
From Digitimes:
Hewlett-Packard (HP) is planning to push two major PC systems for 2010 – tablet PCs and notebook with integrated mini-projectors, according to Monty Wong, vice president and manager of personal computing systems group at HP Taiwan.
The mini-projector notebooks will be produced mainly by Quanta Computer. HP is considering placing the projector on top of the notebook screen, where the webcam is normally located.
HP plans to launch several stand-alone mini-projector products in the market as an introduction to the notebook-integrated designs, Wong noted.
Although the idea of a mini-projector notebook is not new, successfully bring products to market has been delayed by design and engineering obstacles mainly related to cooling solutions.
Syndiant, another of the main players in the growing portaprojector market, is aiming for the higher-resoluation end of the pico projector spectrum, utilizing their VueG8 technology. They soon hope to release chips capable of projecting HD video from a pocket-sized device.
From PCMAG:
Syndiant, a maker of high-resolution microdisplays for pico projectors, and Foryou Multimedia Electronics Co. Ltd., are showing a prototype 1,024-by-600-pixel accessory pico projector at Foryou’s CES booth (#731. The shirt-pocket-sized prototype was jointly developed with Hong Kong’s ASTRI R&D labs.
The prototype incorporates Syndiant’s SYL2061 1,024-by-600 panel, a resolution that is ideal for use with relatively hi-res input sources such as laptops and netbooks. It employs Syndiant’s VueG8 all-digital smart panel technology.
Syndiant doesn’t plan to stop at this resolution; it sees it as a step en route to HD resolution for pico projectors.
Favi Entertainment has announced two new portaprojectors, the RIOLED-V, a Wifi-capable media-playing consumer-oriented device, and the RIOLED-Q, a brighter, larger device for business presentation or theater use.
From PCMAG:
Favi Entertainment announced two LED-based pico projectors, one a bright business projector (the RIOLED-Q), the other a WiFi-enabled consumer model with integrated Web apps (the RIOLED-V) that’s really a hybrid projector/media player. Both include an SM/MMC card reader as well as built-in memory. The company is also introducing a projector that’s larger than a palmtop model yet smaller than a standard portable projector.
The Favi RIOLED-Q has a native 800 by 600 resolution, and joins the Optoma PK301, also announced at CES, as the first pico projectors to boast a rated brightness of 50 lumens. Other features 2 built-in speakers (3W/speaker); digital keystone correction; A/V in, VGA-in, and USB connections; and power via battery or adapter.
Its consumer counterpart, the Favi RIOLED-V, is a WiFi model that the company describes as a hybrid netbook/media player/projector that fits in your pocket. It uses Linux to run a series of Web apps, which include Video (YouTube), Photo (Flickr, Picasa), News (Yahoo News RSS), Weather; E-mail; Internet Radio, and Web Browser. It also has a built-in calendar and alarm clock. Connections include USB, A/V output, and headphone. It operates either via a remote control or by buttons on the unit.
The company has also announced a versatile portable projector, the RIOHD-LED2, for educational, business or home theater use. At 7 by 6 by 3 inches and 2.5 pounds, it falls between a mini projector and a standard portable projector in both size and weight. At a rated 400 lumens, it’s relatively bright for a small portable projector, and its LED lamp should last 20,000 hours. It ships with remote control, power adapter and user guide. Inputs include HDMI, YPbPr, S-Video, Composite A/V, Headphone, and VGA (PC). The RIOHD-LED2 has built-in speakers.
One of the main portaprojector technologies is Texas Instruments’ DLP (digital light processing) chips. Several other technologies exist, however, and the competition is fierce between the key players in the burgeoning portaprojector industry. From Dallas News:
Texas Instruments Inc. is probably the only company at the Consumer Electronics Show using Pez candy dispensers to showcase its hottest technology.
But Dallas-based TI’s newest digital light processing chips for projectors are so tiny that they nestle comfortably inside the little cartridges.
The projectors themselves are almost as small and are being fitted into a growing array of handheld devices, from cameras to cellphones.
TI sees the entire “pico projector” category as ultimately being the biggest revenue generator for its DLP division.
“2009 was kind of the introduction of the concept,” said Kent Novak, senior vice president and general manager of DLP products at TI. “2010 is going to be a broadening of the category.”
The first phone with a DLP projector is already available in the U.S., although the projector for the LG eXpo on AT&T is a snap-on device rather than integrated into the phone.
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The new chip does not allow for high-definition resolution; it maxes out at a resolution of 854×480. HD starts at 1280×720, while 1080p is 1920×1080.
Novak said he doesn’t see much demand for HD video from a pico projector – even when connected to an HD-capable console such as the Xbox 360 – but competitors are betting otherwise.
Dallas-based Syndiant, for example, was founded by former TI engineers and is developing pico chips using a technology called liquid crystal on silicon rather than DLP.
Syndiant is pushing hard to get to HD resolutions, and the projector it developed with Foryou Multimedia Electronics Co. that’s on display this week has a resolution of 1024×600.
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Analysts have estimated that consumers could be buying hundreds of millions of phones, cameras and other mobile devices with built-in projectors every year by 2016.
Several companies are racing to establish their projector technologies as top-of-the-line. In addition to TI and Syndiant, 3M and Microvision are two other big players, and Nikon created a proprietary projector system for its Coolpix S1000pj point-and-shoot digital camera released last year.
The SHOWWX Laser Pico Projector from Microvision is one of the newer laser-based portaprojectors shown at this years Consumer Electronics Show trade show.
A pocket-size laser projector and a set-top box which delivers Web content to your television were named among the best products in an annual competition as the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) prepared to wrap up here on Sunday.
The SHOWWX Laser Pico Projector from Microvision won the online vote and the D-Link Boxee Box won by audience acclamation in the contest called “Last Gadget Standing” sponsored by Living in Digital Times and NetShelter Technology Media.
The SHOWWX projector, which is about the size of a pack of cards, uses lasers to provide a high-quality wide-screen image on any surface.
It can connect to a mobile phone, portable media player or computer and is to go on sale later this year for 500 dollars.
