At the Ceatec electronics fair, Japanese display manufacturer Futaba Corp. has shown the prototype of a wristwatch equipped with a flexible OLED display. The screen, with a diagonal of 3.5", has a rather unusual aspect ratio of 256 x 64 Pixel. The wristwatch is only 0.22mm thick and can easily be wrapped around the forearm, reports Austrian agency Pressetext.
According to Pressetext, the technology is already ready for series production. Photos or other visuals however were not available. Neither has the energy consumption of the prototype has been communicated. The thickness of just 0.22mm is lower than other prototypes shown hitherto. The device features a brightness of 100 candelas per square meter.
The company does not plan to mass-produce the OLED watch; the only purpose of the prototype at hand is to prove the feasibility of such a display and to lure potential customers. Experts believe that first commercial implementations of such small, flexible displays will hit the market during the first half of 2013. Nevertheless, production capacities to serve broader markets are expected not so soon. In addition, OLEDs have a significant drawback in applications with a very tight power budget such as wristwatches: If used against a rather bright background, OLEDs consumer relatively much energy. In addition, OLED displays still show some quality degradation already after a few years of usage. And the development of flexible electronic components required for the circuitry around the display has not reached the level of commercial production.
