Over the past seventy years, weve seen displays seep into almost every aspect of our lives.
We had televisions arrive in our homes, reshaping news and entertainment.
Hot on their heels came smartphones, which changed communication and how we interact with the world at large.
It seems that as our world becomes more complex, screens multiply in kind.
Yet will this trend continue?
As technology evolves and advances, will digital displays keep being integral in our lives?
And how will they change?
Screens… Whats next?
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The first is all about variation.
The next expected change is that the general shape of screens will abandon the traditional rectangle.
The final evolution will be a modification of form.
Specifically the introduction of more curves, three-dimensional designs, and the rise of foldable models.
Leading with OLED
Inurus main advancement has been developing a brand new way of manufacturing OLED displays.
It recentlyraised 9.5mn in fundingfor producing low-cost OLED and has just openeda factory near Berlinto do so.
OLED (organic light-emitting diode) is a marvel of modern displays.
Its paper thin, flexible, bright, and has a high contrast ratio.
A large amount of premium technology uses this tech, fromthe latest Nintendo Switchto high-end televisions.
As someone who has literally just purchased their first OLED TV, take it from me, its incredible.
Yet, as Ratajczak points out, it has one big drawback: its super hard to manufacture.
This is often done via vacuum thermal evaporation (VTE) or organic vapour phase deposition (OVPD).
While these are different methods, each involves evaporating the organic molecules before cooling them onto the substrate.
What Inuru has done is to create a different way of doing manufacturing OLEDs.
For example, being able to use this technology on bottles of medicine.
In the technologys current state, this involves a label lighting up when the drugs reach their expiry date.
Ratajczak sees screen technology rocketing beyond this though.
Another use case Ratajczak mentions is the idea of reusable packaging that we share.
Think of it this way.
We buy a bag of pasta.
Rather than a label, it features a flexible screen that displays the companys branding.
The screens surrounding the bag change to show this product and its branding.
Its an alluring idea, but one I have my doubts about.
Saying that, there are some possible roadblocks for the technology roaring right around the corner.
Of course not and our relationship with digital displays could go in a different direction.
One element seems inarguable: companies want the option to havescreen-likethings everywhere.
Imagine just how much a business would pay to have the first affordable animated packaging, for example.
But we do not necessarily need screens to achieve this.
Instead,augmented reality(AR) may be the next step in screen evolution.
Smart glasses taking over?
AR in this form is too fiddly to overcome actual screens, but you know what will?
For them, its a win win.
So, could this be the end of digital displays?
Are we just waiting around until smart glasses get good and cheap enough?
This makes a certain amount of sense.
Think of something like a medicine bottle.
The use cases are just too striking, he says.
Its hard not to see a world where were utterly bombarded with screens as somewhat negative.
Will more displays remedy this?
Somehow, I doubt it.
The worry, of course, is that AR/VR will make things worse.
That at least with screens we can turn them off or ignore them.
The problem is that theres no clear way of mitigating this.
The same thing will happen with this next step in the display revolution.
