[SID] Projectors to Go Mobile Soon, Firm Says

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May 21, 2008 16:13 Shinya Saeki, Nikkei Electronics

"We will have small projectors mounted on mobile devices before long," said Michael Lebby, president and CEO of the OIDA (Optoelectronics Industry Development Association) in his lecture during the Business Conference at "SID 2008" May 19, 2008.

He cited compact projectors as the market area highly expected to grow from now. "We will be able to enjoy video with large screens anywhere" by projecting the data stored in mobile phones or portable media players, for example, as roughly 20-inch screen video, he said.

Firms including Microvision Inc and Texas Instruments Inc (TI) are currently developing small projectors (See related article). Lebby predicted, "Projectors will be 1/10 as small and four times as bright as existing products in 2012."

As a key to smaller projectors, Lebby cited higher performance of laser used as the light source of projectors. "If LEDs are used as the light source of a projector, its luminance will be limited to 20 to 30lm. Laser light sources will be essential to realize 100lm and higher brightness," Lebby stated.

Commenting on green laser with a wavelength of 550nm in particular, he said, "Its performance is still low. Manufacturers that will succeed in developing high-power green laser will hold the initiative in the small projector market."

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