4 ms·

Apple Patent: Mini-Projectors Could Soon Come to iPads, iPhones

10 points by jamesbritt 15y ago

nkassis 15y ago
Wasn't there an HTC Android phone about a year or two ago with an internal projector?
- ori_b 15y ago
  I know for a fact that companies have been working on this sort of thing for years. It's not a new idea.
polshaw 15y ago
I don't see apple pulling this off in a way that would fit with their high usability standards just yet. Personally i could see it in the mac pro or iphone first. But (whilst i think its awesome tech) i just have a feeling it is a little too gimmicky for the iphone any time soon.
- potatolicious 15y ago
  It's a little annoying that the press flies off the handle about every patent Apple files. We've seen this for years - Apple files tons of patents that never make it into a shipping product. To extrapolate from "Apple patents X" into "Apple plans to ship X" is stupid. It makes me wonder if Apple purposely patents things it doesn't plan to ship to: - increase its patent portfolio - to inject noise and distract from patents it does plan to ship
  - technoslut 15y ago
    I think Apple patents everything they can find to avoid lawsuits. The patents they've actually used in a product are the ones the filed against Android manufacturers. It's hard to take any of the patents seriously. Usually the new tech that Apple introduces are patents filed very close to when the product is publicly released so no one is aware of the feature. Even when they show new features that come from these patents it's never quite the same as what those illustrations show.
lordmatty 15y ago
Just because they have a patent doesn't mean they will manufacture a product. Perhaps they just don't want their competitors to put it in their products, for example.
llambda 15y ago
Here's the same article, formatted for print (I find these easier on the eyes): http://www.theatlantic.com/technology/print/2011/08/apple-patent-mini-projectors-could-soon-come-to-ipads-iphones/243510/ http://www.theatlantic.com/technology/print/2011/08/apple-pa...
siglesias 15y ago
It seems to me that the cons far outweigh the pros here, cons being: increased costs, trapezoidal issues when throwing to a wall (requires machine vision to map wall and adjust dynamically), durability issues, input issues (impede image to adjust OR interact with device, which will shake the image), lighting requirements. Plus, exactly how often does the situation arise where something needs to be shown and there isn't a suitable screen around? We have laptops, iPads, and often the smartphone's screen suffices. Apple are wizards though, and if they can do the impossible here then it will be a huge score for their hardware/software advantage.

10 points by jamesbritt 15y ago

nkassis 15y ago

Wasn't there an HTC Android phone about a year or two ago with an internal projector?

ori_b 15y ago
I know for a fact that companies have been working on this sort of thing for years. It's not a new idea.

polshaw 15y ago

I don't see apple pulling this off in a way that would fit with their high usability standards just yet. Personally i could see it in the mac pro or iphone first. But (whilst i think its awesome tech) i just have a feeling it is a little too gimmicky for the iphone any time soon.

potatolicious 15y ago
It's a little annoying that the press flies off the handle about every patent Apple files. We've seen this for years - Apple files tons of patents that never make it into a shipping product. To extrapolate from "Apple patents X" into "Apple plans to ship X" is stupid. It makes me wonder if Apple purposely patents things it doesn't plan to ship to: - increase its patent portfolio - to inject noise and distract from patents it does plan to ship
- technoslut 15y ago
  I think Apple patents everything they can find to avoid lawsuits. The patents they've actually used in a product are the ones the filed against Android manufacturers. It's hard to take any of the patents seriously. Usually the new tech that Apple introduces are patents filed very close to when the product is publicly released so no one is aware of the feature. Even when they show new features that come from these patents it's never quite the same as what those illustrations show.

lordmatty 15y ago

Just because they have a patent doesn't mean they will manufacture a product. Perhaps they just don't want their competitors to put it in their products, for example.

llambda 15y ago

Here's the same article, formatted for print (I find these easier on the eyes): http://www.theatlantic.com/technology/print/2011/08/apple-patent-mini-projectors-could-soon-come-to-ipads-iphones/243510/ http://www.theatlantic.com/technology/print/2011/08/apple-pa...

siglesias 15y ago

It seems to me that the cons far outweigh the pros here, cons being: increased costs, trapezoidal issues when throwing to a wall (requires machine vision to map wall and adjust dynamically), durability issues, input issues (impede image to adjust OR interact with device, which will shake the image), lighting requirements. Plus, exactly how often does the situation arise where something needs to be shown and there isn't a suitable screen around? We have laptops, iPads, and often the smartphone's screen suffices. Apple are wizards though, and if they can do the impossible here then it will be a huge score for their hardware/software advantage.