By
Paula ParisiJanuary 15, 2025
Panasonic reinforced its 2024 reentry into the U.S. television market, introducing three new models including the flagship Z95B OLED at CES 2025. Some say the company’s new top-of-the-line torch bearer — with spatial audio and sizes up to 77 inches — is competitive with premium models from top manufacturers such as Sony, Samsung and LG. The Z95B features a “next-generation” OLED panel “with Primary RGB Tandem technology, which employs a four-layer emission structure that refines the wavelength of light and increases color purity, thus enhancing light efficiency by 40 percent,” according to Panasonic. Continue reading CES: Panasonic OLED is Competitive in Premium TV Category
By
Paula ParisiJanuary 15, 2025
The new Asus Zenbook A14 laptop leads the company’s Copilot+ line expansion. Powered by the latest Qualcomm Snapdragon X processor, Asus says its battery will last up to 32 hours. And at just 2.18 pounds, the “featherweight” device is drawing comparisons to Apple’s MacBook Air — but at a more affordable price. The Zenbook A14 will start at $1,099.99 when it hits the market later this month in gray with a base 8-core processor featuring 32GB of RAM and 1TB SSD. The model sports a 14-inch OLED display with 1920×1200 resolution reaching 600 nits of peak brightness at 60Hz. Continue reading CES: Lightweight Asus Zenbook Laptop Takes on MacBook Air
By
Paula ParisiJanuary 13, 2025
Lenovo’s “rollable” screen laptop packed a strong wow factor at CES 2025 in Las Vegas last week. In resting mode, the ThinkBook Plus Gen 6 looks like a conventional 14-inch laptop. But press a button (or wave a hand) and the flexible OLED screen extends upward to 16.7 inches, approximating portrait mode. That’s nearly 50 percent more useable display space, and Lenovo has equipped it for more than framing vertically scrollable video. It can be divided into two desktops — one for remote screensharing and one private. The extra space can also be used to display widgets. Continue reading CES: Lenovo ThinkBook’s Rolling Screen Opens to 16.7 Inches
By
Paula ParisiJanuary 10, 2025
Extreme brightness, advanced AI and a 165Hz refresh rate for gaming are among the features of the LG’s 2025 OLED evo lineup. Powering the OLED evo M5 and OLED evo G5 series is LG’s freshly minted Alpha 11 Gen 2 processor, with improved power and AI capabilities to take it beyond last year’s G4 series in picture and sound. LG calls the line the world’s first wireless OLEDs, with the ability to transmit throughout the home. LG’s Brightness Booster Ultimate — offering “brightness three times higher than conventional OLEDs” — and the Alpha 11 Gen 2 processor enhance the package. Continue reading CES: LG Wireless OLED TVs Boost Brightness, Include AI Tech
By
Paula ParisiJanuary 9, 2025
Lenovo’s new laptops include the Yoga Slim 9i, on display this week at CES 2025. Its 14-inch PureSight Pro OLED screen is essentially bezel-free, with 98 percent screen-to-body ratio made possible by the world’s first camera-under-display technology in a laptop. “Hiding the camera under the display panel until it is needed means a pure, uninterrupted screen with no camera notch,” Lenovo claims. When the 32-megapixel camera is activated, the laptop deactivates the pixels where the camera lens is positioned behind the screen. To correct image distortion and lowlight issues, Lenovo is tapping technology provided by Israel-based Visionary.ai. Continue reading CES: Lenovo Yoga Laptops Include One with Invisible Camera
By
Paula ParisiOctober 9, 2024
Freely, the free UK streaming service broadcasters collectively launched in April, has gained a foothold on smart TVs that run Amazon’s Fire TV OS. Backed by the BBC, ITV, Channel 4 and Channel 5, Freely combines free live linear channels with on-demand content in an ad-supported streaming environment. Since those broadcasters must, by government charter, offer “programming beneficial to the public interest,” there has been concern around keeping them relevant and accessible in the streaming era. The deal between Freely and a tech giant with a popular OS is seen as a big win. Continue reading Amazon Fire TVs to Carry Freely Streaming in the UK This Fall
By
Paula ParisiSeptember 11, 2024
China’s Huawei has unveiled a trifold smartphone with an OLED panel that has two vertical folds, opening to a 10.2-inch, 16:11 display. The Mate XT — which comes in red and black and offers three storage options ranging in price from $2,809 to $3,371 — is due to arrive in Chinese stores September 20, the same day that Apple’s new iPhone 16 lineup hits retail shelves there. Huawei and Apple are among the top brands currently battling for market share in what is the world’s largest cellphone market. With Huawei under U.S. sanctions, it is unlikely the trifold phone will be released here. Continue reading Huawei Unveils Mate XT Phone with 3 Panels, 10-inch Screen
By
Paula ParisiMay 22, 2024
Microsoft is debuting a new category of Windows PCs optimized for artificial intelligence. Called Copilot+ PCs, the tech giant is initially introducing it on Surface devices and through OEMs Acer, Asus, Dell, HP, Lenovo and Samsung. Availability begins June 18, with pre-orders starting now at prices of $999 and up. Microsoft says the new architeccture powers “the fastest, most intelligent Windows PCs ever built,” with silicon capable of 40+ TOPS (trillion operations per second) as well as “all–day battery life and access to the most advanced AI models.” The company describes this new wave of PCs as “just the beginning.” Continue reading Microsoft Pivots Windows to AI OS, Launching Copilot+ PCs
By
Paula ParisiMay 21, 2024
Looking Glass has launched a new 32-inch, glasses-free spatial display and an OLED version of its 16-inch model. The screens come in both landscape and portrait orientations and are aimed at XR professionals requiring visualization for 3D digital images, video and applications in real time. The 3D displays broadcast 45-100 views for what the company says is an uncompromised group-view experience. Sensors for touchless gesture control are available and the devices support a wide variety of software, including plugins for Unity, Unreal, Blender and WebXR. The 16-inch OLED lists for $4,000 but is offered at $3,000 for a limited time. Continue reading Looking Glass Debuts Two New Headset-Free Spatial Displays
By
Paula ParisiMay 8, 2024
New iPad Pros with OLED displays and the thinnest design ever, powered by Apple’s new M4 chip topped the news out of Cupertino’s “Let Loose” launch event, where redesigned iPad Airs were unveiled in 11‑inch and 13‑inch M2 configurations. The switch to OLED is a major change for Apple, which used mini-LED on the most recent models. And it’s not just garden variety OLED, but tandem OLED, combining two OLED displays for very high contrast with deep blacks and 1,600 nit peak brightness. The Ultra Retina XDR visuals are enabled by the M4 and its new display engine. Continue reading Apple Brings Tandem OLEDs to New M4-Powered iPad Pros
Wacom is releasing the Wacom Movink, an OLED pen display developed around the needs of creative professionals, digital artists and design students. In addition to being the industry’s first OLED pen display, Wacom says the Movink is its “thinnest and lightest” pen display ever. The Movink combines the pen with a 13.3 inch full HD OLED Samsung drawing tablet display for $750, available from the Wacom online store. The company says the Wacom Movink has the fastest response time among Wacom pens, “with increased pen detection height and no visible parallax.” Continue reading Wacom Movink Introed as Industry’s First OLED Drawing Tablet
By
ETCentric StaffApril 24, 2024
Virtual reality firm Pimax has unveiled two new headsets. The Crystal Super is a high-resolution performance model which starts at $1,800, while the Crystal Light will carry a base list of $700. The Crystal Super packs 29.5 million pixels and allows users to swap between QLED and micro-OLED panels, which Pimxax claims is a first. The Crystal Light offers the same 16.6 million pixels as its Crystal predecessor, but at a more affordable price. At its annual Frontier virtual event, Pimax also shared the specs for its 60G Airlink module, designed for high-fidelity wireless PCVR using WiGig technology. Continue reading Pimax Intros VR Headset with Switchable QLED, OLED Panels
By
ETCentric StaffApril 23, 2024
Sony’s new line of Bravia televisions focuses on MiniLED display tech with the high-end Bravia 9. There is also the OLED-based Bravia 8, and the company is keeping 2023’s A95L QD-OLED in the mix. But the spotlight is in the LED backlighting system that Sony has spent several years refining, XR Backlight Master Drive, which can assert precise control over each pixel. Sony says the technology is comparable to the underpinnings of its professional mastering monitors. The XR Backlight Master Drive system allocates LED resources using purpose-built silicon created by Sony for its MiniLED TVs. Continue reading Sony Rolls Out Brighter, Better-Sounding Bravia TVs for 2024
By
ETCentric StaffApril 23, 2024
Motorola has three new flagship Edge phones that sport AI features to improve photographic performance and overall usability. The top-of-the-line Edge 50 Ultra, mid-level Edge 50 Pro, and economy Edge 50 Fusion are being released in Europe with the line “expanding” to North America later this year. Thanks to “moto ai,” these phones will “elevate every interaction by empowering users to intuitively create content, personalize their device, obtain the information they seek, and accomplish more,” the Lenovo subsidiary said, promising the world’s first “Pantone-validated” smartphone camera and display, with Motorola’s “most advanced solutions for capturing motion.” Continue reading Motorola Begins Launch of AI-Packed Edge Series in Europe
By
ETCentric StaffFebruary 28, 2024
Lenovo made waves at the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona this week, debuting a transparent laptop that is evoking science fiction metaphors and, some say, pointing to a new direction in computing. Lenovo hailed the concept ThinkBook product as an “industry first,” complete with a borderless 17.3-inch MicroLED transparent display, providing a “see-through” experience. Lenovo also touted its AI-powered portables, including a new ThinkPad T14 Gen 5 and ThinkBook 14 2-in-1 Gen 4, both featuring Intel Core Ultra processors “for the next wave of personalized business computing.” Continue reading Lenovo Unveils Transparent Laptop and AI Portables at MWC