Judging by the fact that our lovely planet is home to the Libretto W100, the Kno, Onkyo DX and oodles of prototypes that utilize twin panels rather than a panel and a keyboard, Sharp’s newest microchip is likely to draw some serious industry attention. Improving on an idea that began in 2008, the company has recently shown off a new chip (dubbed LR388G9) that can control two mobile LCDs and can simultaneously display a pair of different 1,024 x 480 pixel clips on a pair of screens; moreover, it can output full 1080p to any source connected via HDMI. Since ‘08, Sharp has increased memory capacity from 16Mbits to 32Mbits while boosting the image processing speed, and the company now intends to hawk this new guy to outfits who manufacture smartphones, e-readers, digital photo frames and even netbooks. If all goes well, the chip will ship within a 261-pin WFBGA package this September, with volume pricing pegged at around ¥2,400 ($27).

Entelligence is a column by technology strategist and author Michael Gartenberg, a man whose desire for a delicious cup of coffee and a quality New York bagel is dwarfed only by his passion for tech. In these articles, he’ll explore where our industry is and where it’s going — on both micro and macro levels — with the unique wit and insight only he can provide.

A few months ago, some videos leaked from Microsoft showed a book-like device with two touch screens and a stylus. The user is seen researching, creating and designing content in a manner that looks both intuitive and innovative. Called Courier, the product doesn’t (yet) exist beyond the conceptual videos, but it shows Microsoft is thinking in some new ways. Ross Rubin discussed Courier’s role for creative professionals last week but I think there’s even more at stake here — I think the concept shows computing models are evolving. Here’s what Courier represents to the market:

The pen isn’t dead. The pen’s been searching for a place in computing for more than a decade. We’ve seen experiments in all different types of pen computing from the PC to the PDA and the phone. They’ve all pretty much failed, and today’s hot commodity is capacitive touch. Microsoft’s Courier video shows how the pen can play a prominent role in the evolution of computing interfaces. While fingers are great for many things, there are tasks better served by the ability to manipulate at the pixel level. Handwriting and the ability to take written notes is one of them. Content creation and painting is another. It’s clear Microsoft knows all this — in addition to Courier, there’s the Deskterity project that melds pen and touch on Surface.

Microsoft can move beyond Windows. It wasn’t that long ago that Microsoft thought the UI for other devices and platforms needed to mimic Windows. Windows CE devices all had tiny start menus and task bars which were totally unusable in a small form factor. The result were clunky devices trying to replicate a desktop experience designed for a large screen with input from a mouse and keyboard. One of the reasons that Windows 7 slate PCs look so un-interesting is that Windows 7 just wasn’t designed with those devices in mind. The net result is that Microsoft appears to be designing and optimizing for the form factor. We’ve seen this before with Surface and the beginnings of a new design with Windows Phone 7. If Microsoft can make the Courier experience familiar enough that consumers can embrace it while optimizing for the dual displays and pen we could see a nice breakthrough in next generation UI.

Tablets aren’t just about content consumption. The Courier UI shows a lot of interaction between the user and the device for content creation. While designers are the example shown, Courier appears optimized for researching, note taking, journaling and other tasks that might require a combination of different media types interacting. As appliance computing becomes more common, users will need both the ability to consume as well as create and interact. Courier shows some new thought and how we might evolve beyond mouse and keyboard while still able to create and design.

The Courier video is impressive not only for technology it showcases but the thinking behind it. UI enhancements such as the “book spine” that holds content placed on the clipboard and the integration of connected content show some out-of-the-box thinking that’s refreshing to see from Redmond — it’s cool that Microsoft is thinking about life beyond Windows and what it might look like. I’m personally hoping that there’s more than just some conceptual animation and Microsoft is able to turn this set of ideas into a real product offering.

We’ve wrote quite a few posts about the Entourage eDGe dual screen eReader + Android tablet combo. It seems that more and more samples are getting to pressfor review. Now it’s time for CNET to get their hands on video treatment on the Entourage eDGe.

After watching that video I can positively say that the eDGe is a nice concept, especially for educational purposes, there’s a lot to be improved here, but that’s always the case with the first generation of innovative new products. The eDGe sells for 499$ in 5 color versions, so plenty of choice here for consumers, has 4 GB of built-in memory, just like the Kindle, but is way more heavy, around 3 lbs (5-6 time heavier) thus handling it is not that easy after prolonged periods of holding in hand.

CNET really liked the massive 9.7 inch eInk screen with annotations capabilities, making it ideal for memorizing your ideas while reading an eBook, then print them on paper or share them with your friends. A special journal mode allows taking notes, like you on a blank sheet of paper.

The eReader part of the Entourage eDGe works with PDF files and other formats but not the one used in Kindle. You can copy your own ebooks from an USB flash disk or buy them online from the included shop, or get free Google eBooks (also included in the installed ‘library’). About the Android screen on the right we’ve found out it’s a stripped out version which features things like eMail, Browser, Office suite and eBook store plus some default installed apps without any option to install others from the Android Market. There’s even the option to get it work like a word processor by attaching a keyboard and folding down the eInk screen like a support base for the tablet.

Covering CES 2010 early this year I was surprised by the amount of dual screen netbooks and hybrid devices small producers tried to push into market to see customer’s reaction. Entrourage eDGe is one such product featuring a dual screen design, one 9.7 inch eInk screen and 10.1 color LCD, both powered by Android OS and an 1.2 GHz CPU.
Laptopmag is the first to post an early review of the Entourage eDGe and shared their opinions with all of us, so here’s what you can expect from this nice concept. Even if 1.2 GHz seems a lot for a mobile CPU, in practice the device is overall slower than the Motorola Droid, which has a 550 MHz CPU. Also things are not getting too far with the battery life, which is not helped by the Power Management software that seems not to be able to close the screen once you fold the device.

The nice part is the ability to focus attention on just one screen by folding the Entourage eDGe back on back and flip the device to face the screen you want. Unfortunately the resistive touchscreen layer on the LCD screen is hard to press some times and has shallow viewing angles, while the eInk screen can be used with a special stylus made for the digitized screen that allows the user to take notes on the eBooks he reads. The only problem is that a page with annotations takes 4 seconds to turn.

Even if it uses Android, Entourage eDGe doesn’t have access to Android Market so there aren’t many apps you can install and the book library only has 250.000 books and I’m not talking about bestsellers here. Add to that over one million of Google Books and I guess you can be satisfied, but no newspapers and magazines are available.
For now the 499 $ dual screen tablet is a nice concept but there’s much to be improved and hopefully there will be a second generation of Entourage eDGe.

read entire article with video review at alltouchtablet.com

Dual screen tablet prototypes have been shown during CES 2010 by a lot of small manufacturers eager to differentiate themselves from big names by doing something utterly different. Astri was one of them with their MyID eInk + touchscreen combo. I’m glad they managed to catch attention of investors as they’ve just announced the MyID will soon hit production. What’s so important is the price: 65 $ for materials and manufacturing, which translates in 150$ max as retail price, a bargain considering you get a device which can open up to 6 eBooks at the same time and navigate the web on the other screen (powered by Android).

Astri MyID: the innovator

The only downside I see is the diagonal of both screen, which at 4.8 inches isnt’ that much bigger than a HTC HD2 for example (which is much more expensive, I have to say), but resolution is OK at 800 x 480 pixels. Below there’s a short video with Astri MyID showing how it works in real life:

www.youtube.com/watch?v=XnUeFWWEj20

The all metal device is about the size of a netbook and it actually felt quite heavy in our hand. On the inside of the dual 10-inch, capacitive multitouch screens work like extended displays and we were able to drag windows from one screen to the other. The entire thing was a bit flaky since it’s obviously running some beta software, but the digital keyboard was easy to pull up and had a haptic-like feedback when we started typing on the bottom screen. The whole thing is pretty damn awesome for a very early build, and the fact that MSI actually plans to bring it to market within the year is pretty unbelievable.

source- engadget.com