Conventional Paper Could be a Thing of the Past Sooner than we Think

http://cleantechnica.com/2008/10/22/samsung-demonstrates-worlds-first-carbon-nanotube-based-display

One of the biggest barriers to the e-book has been the strain they put on the eyes and the constant battery drain. Most of these problems are massively alleviated with the invention of electronic paper. Instead of being backlit and actively projected like traditional screens, e-paper only consumes energy when the image on the screen is changed. In addition, they use reflected light to be read instead of backlights which consume energy.

If this technology is someday put into widespread use around the globe, it could save incalculable numbers of trees from being cut down. Also, with memory storage technology advancing at the rate it is, whole libraries will soon be able to fit into these devices.  There is also the issue of being able to search through electronic text far more efficiently than paper books.

At the moment, the most prominent consumer product to use the technology is Amazon’s Kindle, but it is also being used to make energy effiicient cell phone displays and watches. Although this technology is still in its infancy, it would not surprise me in the slightest if I read to my grandchildren from an e-book using it someday.

OLED Screens: The Display of the Future

http://www.techradar.com/news/television/hdtv/10-things-you-need-to-know-about-oled-631848

Just as LCD and plasma screens push CRTs out of the market, there arrives a new contender, in the form of the Organic Light-Emitting Diode display. Unlike LCD and even standard LED screens, OLED displays require no backlighting. This has the dual benefit of making them extremely thin and far more energy efficient.  Since each pixel creates its own light, they are also capable of incredible refresh rates and amazing contrast ratios.

OLEDs are also potentially capable of feats that, before now, were confined to science fiction. These screens can be transparent and/or flexible, giving them applications such as functioning as a Heads Up Display in cars and airplanes.

However, for all of these advantages, OLED screens are not without drawbacks. They are, for the moment, ridiculously expensive to manufacture, and this cost increases the larger the display becomes. There also remain concerns about their longevity. However, once these issues are cleared up, we will certainly have taken another large step forward in display technology.