RE: Perhaps a cheaper HMD

From Wear-Hard Mailing list Archive (WH) Maintained by R. Paul McCarty

--- Tony Havelka <> wrote:

> > I still predict that once an HMD is made
> commercially that 
> > doesn't look too bad, has QVGA or better, a
> standard 
> > connection such as USB, BT, or VGA, and can be
> bought under 
> > $200, the wearable market will pick up...
> 
> They already exist! Lots of Asian manufacturers are
> using the Kopin 320/230
> microdisplays in some very inexpensive HMDs. 
> Unfortunately, they are not
> flying off the shelf as predicted. 
> 
> -Tony
> 
> 

I have to agree with Tony here.

The problem isn't that reasonably priced QVGA
HMD's aren't available.  The problem is that
the market has now left this kind of niche
display in the dust.

QVGA does NOT appeal to the masses anymore.
(It most certainly does not appeal to me!)
Just look at the entire market that it now
competes with:  1080p HDTVs, desktop 2560x1600
hugemungus displays, 4-inch portable 800x480
video players, etc.  Consumers have been
trained into "mo'megapixels, mo'better".

The only way to prove that QVGA is a workable
display size is to show that you can ONLY
solve a cool problem by wearing a computer as
apparel.  This is the old "killer app" concept.
And at this point, it has to be truely genre-
busting to make an impact and still manage to
make a fashion statement instead of a fashion
faux pas.  Otherwise people will just continue
to fill their pockets with the ipodphone-
gameboy combo and lug around a laptop when
they actually need computer work done.

"CPU-brick" size is no longer an issue, there
are tons of sub-15 cubic-inch computers that
sip milliwatts of power on-sale now, most
with gobs of I/O.  And people do have some
familiarity with alternate input methods
like d-pads, txting, wiimotes, graffiti, etc.
The problem is nobody knows what to DO with
all that cpu power when the only output
channel everyone EXPECTS is an uber-highres
display.  

Heck, I'm subconsiously irritated by my
1600x1024 work display because it isn't "big"
enough to display a full 8.5x11 inch page
without downsampling.

In my opinion, the minimum display rez that
will actually capture attention is probably
native 720p HDTV (1280x720x24bpp).  And to
be really useful it will have to support all
the crap that goes with that: VGA/DVI/HDMI
and Winblows install disks.  All without
looking like a freak.  This is because
the only currently identified Killer App
seems to be the ability to compute/watch
por...er...movies without worrying who
is looking over your shoulder.  Not very
impressive as Killer Apps go, really.
(and anybody who says "but, what about
truely mobile computing?" has never tried
strapping a computer to a newbie and
watched them proceed to walk into every
coffee table/sharp object within 10 feet.
Hilarious? Yes.  Mainstream? No).

--friar

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