The Value Question: Near Eye Display

NEAR EYE DISPLAY

The Value of MicroVision to it's share holders is going to be a portion of the total value it provides to people.... what will that be?

The Value of Use.. 

"I read a study that measured the efficiency of locomotion for various species on the planet. The condor used the least energy to move a kilometer. Humans came in with a rather unimpressive showing about a third of the way down the list....That didn't look so good, but then someone at Scientific American had the insight to test the efficiency of locomotion for a man on a bicycle and a man on a bicycle blew the condor away. That's what a computer is to me: the computer is the most remarkable tool that we've ever come up with. It's the equivalent of a bicycle for our minds."
                                                                                 --- Steve Jobs

The Near Eye display will allow us to use that bicycle for our minds everywhere we go, everywhere we are, and with everything we do. Increasing efficiency, improving productivity. Allowing creativity to be harnessed much more easily, errors to be found and corrected earlier.

The benefits of a PC will no longer limited to a desktop, laptop, or something we have to sit down and focus on. It could be there all the while we are doing.

Kipman wasn't lying when he said they built that new game-changing device around the display that they... er... (MICROVISION) invented... While I think they're scoundrels for claiming credit for the display it is a testament to how amazing it is.

Taqtile's motto is "Everyone is an expert."  That illustrates the value very well.

Taqtile

My visit to Taqtile:
making people who don't know act as though they know. Giving them a knowledge advantage immediately. (You can walk into a facility and perform processes recorded by an expert. You don't have to be the expert to do it.)
Particularly important is Knowledge Capture

The results of this go directly to the bottom line and the efficiency improvements companies have recorded with Hololens are stunning. (a reliable 10% improvement is the stuff of wet dreams. They're getting 90% improvement.) Efficiency improvement

WHO IS WORKING WITH HOLOLENS?

King County Wastewater Treatment


Will it GAME?
Do not forget Pokemon Go. Games are HUGE, and I think the effort to come up with games for this will be huge... do not forget that there was a special introduction of a gaming company at one of the Hololens presentations.





Gaming? Microsoft bought Minecraft, has it for Hololens... and it's really popular.

Minecraft Second Most Popular Game Ever


How many companies to make AR devices using MicroVision's display?

Well, we know Microsoft, Apple, Google, Magic Leap, Facebook, and probably the big computer makers (Dell, Lenovo, Sony, Acer, etc.) will all want in on Augmented Reality.

(Remember, Kipman said "anyone can make their own hololens" and Trimble IS making their own Hololens.)

Apple is doing it --- there are enough patents and leaks to show this. Some of what they are doing is in the open with their "AR Kit." 

Google Had "Glass"

Magic Leap is AR (associated with Google)

I'm nearly certain that Hololens1 and Magic Leap used the same display.

Facebook has AR/VR  -- And also has a substantial facility right up the road from MicroVision HQ. It is unmarked and apparently. secret. (There is nothing on the outside that says "Facebook," nothing on any vehicle that brags about Facebook, no people wearing anything labeled with it can be seen outside. -- I took a picture of the front door a couple of years ago, and my phone did ask me if I wanted to tag the picture I took at Oculus.

Behind it is another facility that is part of Microsoft, and there is a shuttle running between the two campuses.

They will all need the best near-eye display they can get.
There is nothing better yet on the horizon that looks like it will be serviceable. When that appears, it may still be years before it's usable and possible to manufacture in quantity.

A side-note here. We may look at a device and think that it looks simple -- the good things are. MicroVision's core tech, which is essentially a vibrating mirror, looks really simple. Getting it to work as it has to -- and then also assembling the components is anything but simple. Making the sub-components-- the mirror, the magnets, etc., to the precision required is not a simple process. Developing a reliable way to do this in quantity had to be extraordinarily difficult and time consuming. This has made it difficult in the past for holders of MicroVision -- because we were waiting, and it seemed like nothing was happening. This is now a hurdle that MicroVision has cleared. Any potential competing technology has yet to clear this hurdle, and it's a significant one. The distance between prototype and released product is huge.

What are the "killer" applications?

An important question with any new technology. (If you have the first fax machine -- it's cool but useless... there has to be something to DO with it.)

This should not be a problem with AR.

Personal computers were around prior to the early 1980's. They were basically toys, things to tinker with, until the killer app, arrived.

In marketing terminology, a killer application (commonly shortened to killer app) is any computer program or software that is so necessary or desirable that it proves the core value of some larger technology, such as computer hardware, a video game console, software, a programming language, a software platform, or an operating system.^[1] In other words, consumers would buy the (usually expensive) hardware just to run that application. A killer app can substantially increase sales of the platform on which it runs.^[2][3]

For the PC the killer application was the spreadsheet. It took what could be an astonishingly tedious task (prone to errors) and made it happen in a twinkle. (No time to explain it in detail here, but trust me and check here: Visicalc BBC)

After the arrival of the spreadsheet, the PC went crazy.

The killer app for Hololens?

There are several already. Trimble has one - Overlay of design in the physical world.  This increases efficiency in construction hugely and doesn't take a lot of imagination to see how it would. It will save a lot of time and therefore a lot of money. Problems will become apparent more quickly, be solved sooner, and best -- they'll be solved while they're potential problems instead of real ones.


"Benefits every industry that deals with 3D spatial data." Nearly everything we deal with is "3D." -- so the appeal is broad.



Knowledge Capture. This can be used already, and it's huge. You don't need to "train" someone for a job, you have your smartest person do it.... and those who come after can copy. (Everyone's an expert.)

What I am looking forward to most, is being able to learn languages.

An endlessly patient teacher that scans the environment and labels everything in the target language? Sign me up.

How big will the use of Augmented Reality Be?

Microsoft itself said that Hololens would be bigger than the PC.

Microsoft's Stock was worth about $0.09 in 1986; 10 years later in 1996 it was worth $9.00 (A 9,900% Gain.) If we consider Microsoft until the introduction of the X-Box (2001) You get about $30/share (A 33,000% Gain) -- That's perspective on "how big can augmented reality be."

The PC is huge, because it's nearly ubiquitous. It's everywhere. Hololens will be more everywhere, because it can be 'more everywhere' -- not anchored to a desk, table or lap. If you want to use a PC you have to look away from whatever else might be around and focus on the PC... not so with hololens.

In 1976 the number of PCS being used in the US was effectively zero, Apple showed up then and sold some. Then Radio Shack hat the TSR-80 --- by the year 2000 PCs were literally everywhere. They continue to get better.

How much will they earn? 

(and how much will someone pay for those earnings?)

Any answer to this question is guesswork. The value will be significant, because the value it brings to the user will be significant.

There is no good way to come up with this number... {I readily admit that this is guesswork. You are reading guesses. Don't make your decisions based on my guesswork, base your decisions on your own guesswork. If you have a solid critique or method of guessing that you think is better than mine, I'd be happy to read, consider and possibly post it too.... if we get enough people working on it, we might actually arrive at a good guess.

 To do this, I'm going to plop some possibly numbers into the Personal Computer "killer application" and see where the numbers lead.

I like to come up with a couple of frameworks of thinking (always willing to throw an unworkable framework out) and sort of come up with a range. (And after wrestling with this for quite some time, have decided to rely on the fairly basic model below. --- it could be wildly off... I admit that, but it involves the least guessing.)

Method 1 (I claim no accuracy, this is a framework.)

• $70 Billion Euros for the next four years --- my SWAG then is $100 billion in the next FIVE years, which is my preferred time horizon. (since a euro is 1.1 USD I'll consider them equivalent.)
• Assume that a display would account for about 10% of the price of the computer. ($900 computer, $900 software + $200 for a monitor) 
• Use 10% of the total AR market for display
• Use 1/2 of the 10% as the MicroVision share. 

 $100 Billion * .1 =$10 Billion *.5 = $5Billion.

Using this method my SWAG(scientific wild-ass guess) is $5Billion (Divide into the 140 million shares = $35/share (To be conservative, cut it in half again) = $17/share (This vertical)

After spending some time thinking about it, that's the only guess I'm willing to make here... it's taking an "accepted number" and extrapolating. Trying to anticipate the market with all its variables is a daunting task, and probably not worth the effort, because EACH stage is guess work. I could be off by miles already -- but I think the guess is reasonable and the theory sound.

Some of the basis I'm using came from the video below. (It says $70 Billion in the next four years)

Errors happen all the time with data... they happen even more with speculative future-anticipating  (I know this) Read this for some background: I'm skeptical of Data

 

Quick Summary so far:

Interactive Display SWAG = $14
Near Eye Display SWAG   = $17-35
LiDAR............................... = ?
Display only.......................= ?
                                            = $31-49

Lenovo ThinkReality

This is proof of concept & another market opportunity for Microvision's near eye display.

Lenovo rode the wave of PC development. They made PCs -- they used the Windows operating system -- didn't fight the trends.

They're going to go in the straightest line from where they are to where the most money can be made... whoever has the best software or the best display, they're going to use it if they can.


Kipman said that anyone can build their own hololens.

The development contract said that once the development was done, Microvision could sell the results to whoever they want. 

This is good.

Putting their own spin on form-factor -- moving the computing to a belt-worn box may have significant advantages. (Form factor is one of the biggest challenges.)


Infosurhoy

UploadVR


Yesterday the tech giant announced the ThinkReality A6, a new enterprise-focused AR headset. From the looks of it, it’s the company’s answer to both HoloLens and Magic Leap. Like those headsets, ThinkReality A6 consists of a pair of see-through lenses that can project virtual images into the real world. You interact with this content using a three degrees of freedom (3DOF) motion controller similar to Magic Leap One. HoloLens 2, meanwhile, uses hand-tracking.


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Fudzilla


The new ThinkReality system is based around an AR headset and a software platform. Lenovo said that the ThinkReality A6 is a comfortable 380-gram headset with two fisheye cameras on the front and depth sensors and a 13-megapixel RGB sensor.

There are onboard microphones for voice control, and the headset can detect where you're gazing to optimise resolution or navigation.

Punters can interact with your virtual environments using an included 3DoF controller. Untethered, the A6 can last up to four hours with its 6,800mAh battery, and you can still use the device while it's plugged in and charging.

The headset connects to an SSD-sized compute box that contains a Snapdragon 845 CPU running Android. There's also an Intel Movidius chips powering waveguide optics. Each eye gets a 40-degree diagonal field of view and 1080p resolution.

Microsoft’s HoloLens 2 uses a Snapdragon 850 CPU and packs two 2K MEMS displays. Microsoft also squeeses all the computing components into the headset rather than in a separate box like Lenovo does.
History of Lenovo

Product Adoption...

Very few of even the Microvision investors I talk to have actually tried 3D computing.

If you read this and haven't tried it yet, go to your nearest Microsoft store and try something 3D.

Will it be successful? It has to be. It's just better in every way...

How successful will large screens (and large interactive screens) with a tiny form factor and extremely low power consumption be? (very popular)

How successful will a scanning LiDAR be, that can identify friendly people and unlock at your front door sometimes and lock it at others? It can help with security, and with all kinds of automation?

• Large screens, tiny form factor
• Large interactive screens, tiny form factor
• Scanning LiDAR (for security, automation, mapping, self driving vehicles)
• Near Eye displays for 3D computing.

Key components for multiple emerging technologies... How successful can that be?

Probably as successful as cameras have been... 

I'm going to hang on to my shares in this company for a long time... 

IOT - Price Calculator

More than one request has been made for a price target calculator that includes smart speakers. (or for specifically smart speakers.)

This would be primarily to see the market potential of MicroVision's Interactive display.

There aren't many years of data to establish any kind of trend of only smart speakers, which makes this kind of thing problematic.

It's also too limiting. 

Many of the devices in the "Internet of things" are going to be excellent places for interactive displays: Like the smart thermostat as an example. What used to be a coil of metal with a mercury switch now has the brains of a high-end 1990's PC -- and when you can crunch that much data, it begs for a display. When you have that much intelligence on a thermostat, you can connect it to your calendar, program your days off, or set up profiles for events. Some way of programming this remotely may be common, but a way to adjust it at the source would be very useful, and desirable.

How big is the internet of things going to get? It's going to get probably gigantic, and where it goes is anyone's guess. There are a lot of strange connected devices, and nearly anything that is connected might be wanting for a screen & controller. Easier to design and manufacture than adding buttons, and complex button patterns. (Short list from the linked article: Toothbrush, flip-flops, luggage, camera for dogs, salt shaker, umbrellas, trash cans, mirror, condom(yes, sorry), toaster, liquor decanter, wine bottle, fork, etc.

Ikea is going to be launching smart blinds -- I think smart blinds are going to be very popular soon, because they could help regulate the temperature in a home, save energy, and make a place more livable.

If we take Gartner's numbers and assume that we're going to add 12 Billion smart devices in the next year.... and we get 1% adoption of smart displays in those 12 billion devices -- that could be 120 million interactive laser displays in use.

If half of them are "smart speakers" and adoption is stronger than 1% of those, the number could be much higher.

Interesting new things could appear from nowhere -- remember the smart speaker, is a very new product category, and all of a sudden everyone seems to be competing in the space. 


ZDNET

Big and getting bigger -- there are already more connected things than people in the world. Analyst Gartner calculates that around 8.4 billion IoT devices were in use in 2017, up 31 percent from 2016, and this will likely reach 20.4 billion by 2020. Total spending on IoT endpoints and services will reach almost $2tn in 2017, with two-thirds of those devices found in China, North America and Western Europe, said Gartner.

Out of that 8.4 billion devices, more than half will be consumer products like smart TVs and smart speakers. The most-used enterprise IoT devices will be smart electric meters and commercial security cameras, according to Gartner.

Upgrade Cycle at hand

I've been watching for a couple of days the rather rare event of Apple products being discounted. They do this when an upgrade cycle is at hand. Interesting, and something to watch, but that's about all.

For all of these companies to be offering discounts simultaneously -- that's even more interesting.

It's possible that they all over-produced these devices and they need to reduce inventory, or that they're trying to increase adoption. But the market for these devices isn't shrinking, it's growing rapidly.

But it looks to me like there's a new feature coming, and they're making room.

When I've talked to the people at Amazon stores, and other places that sell them, the common response is that almost always the second speaker someone buys is a speaker with a screen.


Digital Trends

Choosing what smart home products are right for you is really about choosing the right voice assistant. With Amazon Echo, Google Home, and Apple HomePod all using separate assistants, it can be difficult to decide which one is right for you. On the one hand, Amazon Alexa offers a huge range of integration. There are tons of smart plugs, smart bulbs, TVs, cars, and microwaves that work with Alexa — making it the most widely integrated of the three. On the other hand, though Google Assistant is still a bit behind, a lot of people prefer interactions with this A.I. over Alexa.

Whether you’re in the market for an Echo or a Google Home smart speaker, the price is likely going to end up playing a big role in your purchasing decision. Amazon and Walmart are both offering generous discounts on smart home bundles, speakers, and displays right now. With discounts up to $65, now is a great time to add a little extra smart to your home.

Echo Show vs Lenovo Smart Display 10

Check it out.... and interactive projection will make these much better.

Echo Show vs Lenovo Smart Display 10


Echo Show

THE GOOD

The Echo Show offers everything you love about Alexa, complete with new video and touchscreen controls. It shines best as a dedicated, hands-free video calling command center.

THE BAD

The uninspired design feels dated. At launch, the touchscreen visuals don't do enough to bring Alexa to life, or make her much easier to use -- though that could change with the arrival of new screen-specific Alexa skills.

Lenovo Smart Display 10

THE GOOD

The Lenovo Smart Display is a great kitchen assistant with an elegant design and a high-resolution touchscreen. It multitasks well, responds quickly to both touch and voice commands, and offers a rich, personalized home screen and a customizable ambient mode.

THE BAD

I'd like the screen to do more when you play games or listen to music. You're limited to Google Duo for making voice calls. Scrolling through content with your voice can be tedious.

THE BOTTOM LINE

If you'd like visual recipe help in the kitchen, the Lenovo Smart Display performs that task exceedingly well and everything else well enough that it deserves your consideration.

Google Smart Screens

For Reasons I stated before, I give us very very high chances of being involved here.


Microvision and Google Smart Screens << from earlier this year.


Washington Post

Google isn’t backing down in the fight for the smart home. On Thursday, the tech company said it’s releasing the first of several home assistant devices with screens slated for the summer.

The Smart Display, built by Lenovo and running Google’s Android Things software for Internet-connected devices, hits stores this weekend. Like Google’s Home, Home Mini and Home Max, the Smart Display lets you control it with your voice and focuses on playing music. But it also has either an eight-inch or 10-inch screen, on which you can watch YouTube videos, have a video chat or get better answers to some questions.

The Smart Display starts at $200.

The Lenovo Smart Display is the first of several similar devices that Google revealed in January, at the CES technology trade show. JBL, Sony and LG were also set to release Google Assistant devices with screens in the summer.

Lenovo AR headset

So, Lenovo is releasing this AR headset, that works with a reflective visor, and a smartphone. It's a step up from what we saw with Pokemon Go. (I occasionally see some die-hard players out there still.)

I will be interested to see how well this is adopted. AR is in the early stages and for industrial applications it's clear that it will be well received. How much people use it for fun, remains to be seen -- but I think it's going to be a it. (maybe not in this iteration.)

NewAtlas  (Source) much more there.



The Mirage headset sports a pair of motion-tracking cameras that keep watch for two markers. First there's a tracking beacon you place on the floor, which tells the system where the ground is and allows the projected characters to find their footing. And of course there's your controller, which looks like the handle of a lightsaber with a glowing nub of a blade on the end.


When you look at the thing in your hand through the AR goggles, a beam of light emerges from the tip with that all-too-familiar hum. It really feels like you're wielding one of the most iconic weapons in movie history, and it's almost entertaining enough just to swing it around and watch it follow your every move. The next step – turn that lightsaber onto some deserving droids.

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The app includes a few other game modes as well. In a similar vein to the droid defense game we played, you can also take on bad guys like Darth Vader and Kylo Ren in lightsaber battles. If you want to slow things down a bit, the classic Holochess game we see in A New Hope is now an (augmented) reality, with players directing the alien pieces around the board by pointing the lightsaber stub. And finally, a mode called Strategic Combat turns your living room floor into a warzone between the Rebels and the Empire, in a strategy game that looks like Age of Empires.

Other Hololens Headset Makers

If you're not already watching Dell, Acer, HP, Lenovo and 3Glasses (who are they?) That's where be seeing a Hololens headset. (I suspect all the third party headsets will have to be tethered to a computer. We shall see.



HotHardware

PCAdvisor.uk

Microsoft has opened up its Holographic platform to third parties, it announced at Computex 2016 in June, enabling other manufacturers to build headsets just like its HoloLens and help it to expand the platform. A consumer HoloLens "may come from us, or it may come from a partner, and either way that's fantastic," said Microsoft's Terry Myerson, executive vice president of its Windows and Devices Group.

Microsoft reconfirmed this at CES in January 2017, telling HoloLens hopefuls that it is partnering with PC makers including Dell, Acer, HP, Lenovo and 3Glasses, which will release third-party headsets based on HoloLens technology over the coming months. These will be available much cheaper with prices starting at a more attractive $299, although unlike HoloLens they will need to be tethered to a PC.

“These new head mounted displays will be the first consumer offerings utilizing the Mixed Reality capabilities of Windows 10 Creators Update," said Microsoft.

ONMSFT
For now, the company is counting on third-party manufacturers to democratize its Windows Holographic ecosystem, and we recently saw a number of companies showing off a first portfolio of affordable VR headsets back at CES 2017. However, Microsoft’s HoloLens will likely remain in a league of its own as it’s still the only self-contained holographic headset in the market today, which certainly explains its premium pricing.

Smartphone Sales leaders

We know that Sony has been shifting gears with their corporate strategy, trying to focus on devices, and components over their own consumer electronics products - so some of this isn't a surprise.

What is interesting overall is that this is a quite fluid list. Yes, there are some big players here who have remained big players -- Samsung, Apple and LG; but some drop off the list, and some have risen very quickly (Xaiomi & Micromax)

Don't think for a second that Sony couldn't pop back onto this list in a big way with the right innovations (they have the manufacturing capability -- and a lock on a certain component that could make them immensely more popular.)

With the big players desperate for innovation -- and some small players providing it. I think the landscape is very interesting and still very favorable for Microvision.

TechPP  - more at the source.


There’s no denying that Chinese OEMs are rocking the smartphone industry since the last few years with the IC Insights report for 2015 stating that 7 among the top 12 smartphone OEMs were based in China. This year’s report by the American analytical firm however cites some more interesting news. As per the report, some established market players including the likes of Sony, Microsoft and Coolpad have been kicked out of the Top 12 Smartphone OEMs list by a few emerging brands like Meizu and Micromax thanks to their breathtaking growth during the first quarter of 2016.

Sony, the Japanese giant has been struggling with its smartphone strategy, both in high end and low end markets. Recently, the company has tried to get rid of the Xperia Z series for Xperia X, but that doesn’t seem to have made any significant impact. Microsoft on the other hand, has almost given up on the Windows 10 Mobile, with hardly any new Lumia phones released since 950 and 950 XL. What was once considered to be a viable alternative for iOS and Android, is slowly but surely getting relegated to insignificance.

Micromax, the Indian smartphone maker has in fact jumped up to the 12th spot after having secured sale of 5 million smartphones in the last quarter, thereby making their first entry into the list. Sony, Microsoft and Coolpad on the other hand saw their figures of 3.4, 2.3 and 4 million respectively. The analytical firm expect Micromax to record a year on year growth of 74% leveraging on its head start in the first quarter of 2016. Thus it can be assumed that the homegrown smartphone brand isn’t quite facing a slowdown in the sales thanks to its Chinese counterparts, and going by the report, it seems to be dominating the retail smartphone market in the India.




Samsung however is still leading the pack with a sales figure of 81.7 million smartphones (Q1 2016) and is closely followed by Apple. IC Insights however expects them to incur a fall in their smartphone shipments by 1% and 3% respectively by the end of this year. Samsung’s Korean counterpart LG however has fallen down a rank and is now placed at 7th spot just below the high flying Vivo. Apart from that, most other Chinese smartphone makers have successfully held on to their places with Huawei and Oppo securing the 3rd and the 4th spots respectively.

Incidentally, Xiaomi which was one of the high flying Chinese smartphone brands during 2013 and 2014 has failed to make an impact this year and is still stuck at the 5th spot. With the likes of OnePlus 3, ZUK Z2 Pro competing with the Xiaomi Mi5 with their stellar price to performance ratio, Xiaomi needs more than just the Redmi Note 3 to turn tables.

The Fear Motivation of the Modern CEO

I once had the good fortune to be able to chat with a mover in the consumer electronics field.

One of the things I was told during that event is that most of the CEO's -- the movers and decision makers in consumer electronics have very little courage to do anything new. This was echoed in a way by Mr. Tokman during the ASM, when he mentioned that all the companies want to be "fast followers." 

When other company finds something new that catches hold, then everyone will know where they want to be -- they'll find something that they can improve or adjust for their own audience, and they'll pile in.

We've seen this before with cameras in cell phones, with smart phones, with Amazon Echo style devices -- how long did Amazon have to sit on that out of fear, and then suddenly Apple, Google and others pile into the space.

They are fast followers.

Now, of course, I would have preferred to have PicoP in the Motorola attachable pico projector that was announced yesterday -- but that is the kind of thing that will start the fast follower stampede.

And the fast follower stampede in portable projection favors MicroVision in every way. PicoP is brighter, higher resolution, much higher contrast, lower power consumption, smaller, has infinite focus -- and it's already embedded in a phone?

In the Motorola device, or not in it -- the more they promote it, the better for us.

What's our competition?  I guess what comes naturally with PicoP is too much to ask for them.

Line forming now for Qualper phone

Coming soon to a neighborhood near you. 

No one who was at the meeting who saw the Qualper phone in person has any doubt that this is in the future.

Other OEMS -- put in your orders for PicoP projection engines quickly or you'll be second -- and lose out to whoever does this first.

Growth of Pico Projector Market

CXO Today    MORE at the source

Pico projectors have been there for nearly a decade. However, nearly all of the devices available in the market were considered “dumb”, as they had no operating system to speak to and required a host device to be connected to them to provide the content. All that is changing today. The growth of the market is largely driven by smartphones and tablets among others. Many new Pico projectors are offering an Android operating system and some even offer wireless streaming. 

In the initial days, the image quality produced by a normal Pico projector was not satisfactory; therefore, there was a demand for general projectors with a good and sharp image quality, at a similar price range. The issues with image quality were resolved with the development and introduction of high-definition (HD) Pico projectors. Players in the ecosystems of Pico projector have started the development of HD Pico projectors. Recently in October 2015, Sony introduced MP-CL1 mobile projector. This Pico projector delivers HD resolution using laser light as a source and was priced at USD 349.99.

Mobile, wearables driving growth

“Mobile electronic devices offer consumers and corporate users the portability they desire, causing an increasing number of users to employ products like smart phones and netbook PCs as their primary platforms for computing and Internet access,” said Sanju Khatri, principal analyst, signage/projection, for iSuppli.

Introduction of the Pico projector has given significant opportunity for the development of an innovative wearable electronic device. Players in the ecosystem of Pico projectors have done lots of research and development so that Pico projectors can be embedded into wearable electronics. Cicret (France) is one such company which has developed a bracelet which includes the Pico projector as one of many components; other components include proximity sensor, accelerometer, and vibration module. The company is planning to start its manufacturing by fall of 2016 and the bracelet is expected to be available to consumers by the end of 2016.

APAC a vibrant market

Lenovo Group, Sony Corporation and Haier are some of the players involved in the development and introduction of Pico projectors into their products. 

With deals and acquisitions heating up, the corporations are still investing in the technology. However, it seems some work is still needed on the content side of things.  The agreement between Sony and Viacom to stream cable channels on mobile devices in 2014 may be an extremely important step toward providing the much-needed content that these Pico projectors need.  

The India growth factor

According to a 6Wresearch report, India Pico projector market shipments value reached over $1.8 million in CY 2015. Xelectron and Portronics together captured around 62 per cent share of the market even though more than 7 vendors shipped projectors in India. Pico projectors featuring resolution of 320X240 accounted for major share of the market. Other major players in the India Pico projector Market are Asus, Vox, Zync and Acer.

According to Anuj Mehrotra, Senior Research Analyst, 6Wresearch-India Electronics Division,“Growing need for portable projectors, decreasing TCO (Total Cost of Ownership) and rising need across application segments such as education, media & entertainment, Corporate and Healthcare have increased the awareness of PICO Projectors in the country. Additionally, introduction of advanced features such as 3D technology and in-built Wi-Fi capability have further assisted the market attentiveness.”

According to Pulkit Shrivastava, Research Analyst, 6Wresearch-India Electronics Division, “Over the recent quarters, India Pico projector Market has witnessed entry of several new players with advanced technological capabilities. For instance, Canon, one of the key players in India Projector Market has launched RAYO series of Pico projectors featuring superior image resolution and Wi-Fi capability to target utmost share in this niche market.”

While it seems to many that Pico projectors were becoming a faded dream, the industry on the whole is poised for a rebirth. As a tech enthusiast notes in his blog, much like the mythological Phoenix rising from the ashes, Pico projectors will once again soar to new heights, thanks to the digital explosion that is giving a new meaning to many such technologies of the bygone era.

Lenovo Loves Projection

Lenovo Blog

June 9 Live Event Link (10AM-1PM Pacific Time)

More at source.

Customers loved the projector, and their reaction helped spur integration of projectors into other products. For the past two years, our R&D teams have refined that technology and looked for the best opportunities to deliver a bigger, more sharable display to different customers – even business users. Earlier this year we launched our first module-based tablet, the ThinkPad X1 Tablet, which features swappable modules for extreme productivity, including a projector so you can easily present and share your screen.

Lenovo Smart Cast 

We’re also looking at which future products could benefit from a projector, and started with our Smart Cast smartphone concept product unveiled at Tech World 2015.

Equipped with an infrared camera sensor, the Smart Cast projector displays a virtual keyboard and responds to user gestures like typing. If brought to market, these type of advancements in projector technology will allow us to move beyond the traditional limitations of a physical device. Imagine – any tabletop or flat surface could be instantly turned into a keyboard for greater productivity and flexibility. You can see its potential brought to life in this virtual piano-playing demo from Tech World 2015.

As we as consumers continue to choose extremely mobile multimedia-optimized devices, I expect we’re going to see more and more products with second-screen capabilities, integrated or attachable – whether it’s a smartphone with a camera/projector combination, a laptop that projects a bigger display or even a projector that can be bought as a stand-alone device, like our pocket Pico projector.

Modular Motorola Phone

Whether or not this is PicoP, this will be good for MicroVision -- because next to other small projectors, PicoP is the best.

Just in case you have forgotten where Motorola is: Motorola Mobility Acquired by Lenovo

Android Authority

Modular Motorola Phone -- very soon.

Much as LG has its “Friends” so to is Motorola said to have “Amps”. By making use of the 16 small gold-colored circles on the back of the device, which are reportedly connection pins that facilitate the modular backplates. According to Venture Beat:

Motorola has at least six modules, called “Amps,” planned for launch, including a simple colored backplate that ships free with both handsets. The more interesting ones will be, of course, sold separately, both from Moto as well as third-party manufacturers. The first-party modules available at launch allegedly include stereo speakers; a battery pack; a camera grip with flash and optical zoom; a pico projector; and a rugged cover with wide angle lens attachment.

Those concerned with the clear camera bulge on the back will be relieved to hear that the report mentions they “will actually sit flush when there are Amps attached.”

Lenovo ThinkPad -- with Projector Module

It appears that the shape of the projector module is the same as the projector they had on the Yoga - so, so far, I would assume DLP for this module.

I would also assume that they have been seeing some success with the projector in their Yoga series -- so this is good news for us if they're continuing with DLP, and great news for us if it's been converted to PicoP.

From ZDnet

"Entering product range is a modular tablet, the ThinkPad X1 Tablet, which comes with three clip-on modules: A five-hour battery module that extends the length of time that the tablet can be used, from 10 hours to 15 hours; a projector module that includes a pico projector and an HDMI port; and an imaging module that makes use of an Intel RealSense camera."


From GSMarena

Several optional add-ons can bring additional functionality like a built-in projector, which promises a 60" image at 2 meters, a 3D Intel RealSense camera and the battery module. There's a single USB 3.0, one USB Type-C, HDMI and mini DisplayPort. You also get a fingerprint sensor and LTE too.



From TheVerge

Windows tablet, you can attach three modules to the bottom to transform it into a laptop, projector, or a 3D camera. The modules look like battery packs, and the “productivity” one extends battery life by an additional five hours alongside HDMI and USB ports. 

Lenovo’s "presenter" module includes a pico projector to project a 60-inch display out of the bottom of the ThinkPad X1....

...My first impression here is that Lenovo hasn’t perfected the tablet laptop hybrid, but its additional modules are an interesting concept. Unfortunately, those won’t come bundled with the ThinkPad X1 tablet. The 3D camera or additional battery / ports modules are $149, and the projector is even more at $279. Lenovo is planning to launch the ThinkPad X1 tablet in February priced at $899, so you’re looking at more than $1000 if you want the full functionality of the modules.

Screen Jacket -- the Ecosystem is ready!!

The Ecosystem is improving in the most interesting ways. 

This may seem ridiculous, but it's not, this is the kind of stuff that pop culture picks up to surround a popular product. If Lenovo didn't think their projectors were going to be really popular and really portable, they wouldn't have allowed their name to be attached to it.

Silly? perhaps. But how much money will be made with Star Wars themed products this year?

Lenovo, BTW is aware of Laser scanning projection, and there are good reasons to suspect strongly they're connected with MVIS, but there's nothing definite yet. (Check Lenovo Smartcast at IFA)

Thanks Joe!

So, my friend Joe started digging up some more videos. Enjoy.

Check out the SONY Korea YouTube Channel

#Goodweird

Not PicoP yet, but our specs are better... they'll be our customer. They like embedded projectors.

HighSnobiety

New Lenovo Tablet Has Projector

Still looking for details about this. I haven't yet gotten confirmation of the projector specs, but a close inspection of the images associated with the article indicate that it's a DLP projector.  

Increasing popularity of pico projection will be good for MicroVision. This appearance does tell us a couple of things that are significant: 

• Large OEMS are looking at pico projectors.
• There was enough interest in Lenovo's first Yoga Tablet with PicoProjector that they did it again.

They have adjusted the location of the projector, and bumped up it's power a little bit. 

I'm pretty sure SONY component sales people have knocked on the door of Lenovo.

ZDNet

The Yoga Tab 3 Pro's integrated pico-projector can't be used when you're working in 'stand' mode as it's flush to your desk, but it has a free line of sight to a projecting surface in all other modes.

Lenovo says the Yoga Tab 3 Pro can project images up to 70 inches across -- a considerable increase on the Yoga Tablet 2 Pro's 50 inches. We found its performance to be very impressive. Its 50-lumen brightness makes it viable to use in dimly-lit rooms during the daytime, although in a brightly lit office it will likely suffer from washed-out colours. An app lets you select pre-saved content, and is very easily bypassed.

The projector is undoubtedly the star of the Yoga Tab 3 Pro show, and it should prove useful both at work and at home. It's easy to operate, and is complemented by good battery life and an above-average audio subsystem.