Philips unveils world’s first ‘Rollable Display’ pocket e-Reader concept
Fully Functional, Mobile e-Reader Demonstrates Viability of Rollable-display Concept
14 September 2005 Berlin, Germany – Building on its leading position in rollable displays and drawing on its
considerable heritage in personal electronics, Philips Polymer Vision revealed its Concept Readius last week at the
Internationale Funkausstellung (IFA) in Berlin, Germany. Philips Concept Readius is a prototype of a connected consumer
device for business professionals unwilling to sacrifice readability, mobility, performance, or weight in a
pocket-sized, e-reader concept.
The Readius is the world’s first prototype of a functional electronic-document reader that can unroll its display to a
scale larger than the device itself. With four gray levels, the monochrome, 5-inch QVGA (320 pixels x 240 pixels)
display provides paper-like viewing comfort with a high contrast ratio for reading-intensive applications, including
text, graphics, and electronic maps. Using a bi-stable electrophoretic display effect from E Ink Corp., the display
consumes little power and is easy to read, even in bright daylight. Once the user has finished reading, the display can
be rolled back into the pocket-size (100 mm x 60 mm x 20 mm) device.
Based on Philips Polymer Vision’s PV-QML5 rollable display reference design, the Readius was created in order to
demonstrate the viability of the rollable-display concept in mobile applications and to gain customer feedback at the
IFA 2005.
“Making displays thinner and flexible will have advantages in power and weight. But the only way to add the key
advantage of size—allowing larger displays in smaller, pocket-size mobile devices—is by actually making the displays
rollable,” says Polymer Vision CEO Karl McGoldrick. “The Readius demonstrates this, as well as showing that we have
taken this technology a major step further towards product and market.”
Polymer Vision does not intend to commercialise this concept as a product in the market. Instead, it is demonstrating
the fitness of its rollable displays for use in the mobile devices of tomorrow.
READIUS is a trademark belonging to Koninklijke Philips Electronics.