I miiiight be useful if you had a load of gadgetry and widgets on the Windows sidebar and wanted to offload them to a separate tiny screen next to your keyboard but I don't know anyone who actually has the sidebar turned on.
If they can be programmed to display what you want.
Graphic equalisers, scratch pads, racing games, ventrilo, links to websites for MMO players to see if it's worth bashing a particular mobs head in or to stock markets for those more financially informed.
Course it could turn out to be completely pointless. I reserve judgement.
guarantee they'll have some uses in games assuming the developers code for it... flight sims with extra instrument panels, racing games with side/rear mirrors, MMORPG's with statistics and chat windows just to throw a few ideas out.
WoW already does similar with the logitech G15 style keyboards.
You could do some good stuff with this but you would have to be brave enough to rethink some of the user interface - not something that most windowing systems really allow.
f'rinstance, all the the big display is used for active work and all menus, pop-ups and messages on the little'uns. Like function keys only you can see what they do.
Given the coservatism of most application developers it is doomed to highly customised stuff helping UPS drivers and traffic wardens.
those who cry "what's the point in so many screens?" clearly aren't power users.
I have 3 widescreen LCDs on my work machine, and it's still not enough for all the systems I'm managing and monitoring.
At home I have 3 LCDs, and a projector (cloned off the centre screen). Middle screen is used for central activities (movies, games, net etc.) while my two 'wing mirrors' are used for utils such as volume control, music players, task manager, download managers etc.
So, yes, I can see a point to more screen acreage.
As for battery? OLED screes are significantly more efficient than LCDs, and running them constantly would have less impact than accessing a CD/DVD for just a few minutes.
No, where I become sceptical is the touchscreen element. Not entirely sure how well it would work on a screen that small. Even the Iphone has a bigger screen than that, and touch only JUST works.
You would have to be very careful designing the UI.
Surely you could just have one long, thin, screen to divide as you wish?
@Tony72: I think there's more mileage in that concept myself -- Imagine being able to switch the keyboard from qwerty to classic azerty to dvorak to Nordic...
Velocity Micro Edge Z30 Midsize Desktop (2.66GHz Intel Core i5 750, 4GB DDR3, 500GB HDD, DVD±RW DL, Windows Vista Home Premium 64-bit)
Apple iMac All-In-One Desktop (3.06GHz Intel Core 2 Duo, 4GB DDR2, 1TB, DVD+-RW DL, Mac OS X v10.5 Snow Leopard, 27" LCD)
HP (Hewlett-Packard) Pavilion p6210f Mini-Tower Desktop (2.6GHz Athlon II X4 620, 6GB DDR2, 640GB HDD, DVD±RW DL, Windows 7 Home Premium)
HP (Hewlett-Packard) Compaq Presario CQ5210F Mini-Tower Desktop (2.7GHz Athlon 64 X2 215, 3GB DDR2, 500GB, DVD±RW DL, Windows 7 Home Premium)
Apple iMac All-In-One Desktop (3.06GHz Intel Core 2 Duo, 4GB DDR2, 500GB, DVD+-RW DL, Mac OS X v10.5 Snow Leopard, 21.5" LCD)
Intel crams four displays into one PC
Lottie
Pretty #
Posted Wednesday 23rd September 2009 11:43 GMT
Looks nice, but I'm not too sure what they could be used for really.
Having said that, I'd get one for sure if I could have an excel spreadsheet on the screen and play minesweeper on one of the screens.
Pretending to work FTW!!
shaunm
talk about.. #
Posted Wednesday 23rd September 2009 11:43 GMT
Overkill, who needs that many screens I meen really?
The Original Ash
Four times the screen means #
Posted Wednesday 23rd September 2009 11:43 GMT
Four times the prawn!
WINNAR!
Code Monkey
And the battery? #
Posted Wednesday 23rd September 2009 12:00 GMT
That's going to be hopeless unless they've crammed 5kg of batteries in it somehow.
tony72
Lame #
Posted Wednesday 23rd September 2009 12:00 GMT
Why don't they just build an Optimus Maximus* keyboard into the laptop, and get 103 displays in one go?
*http://www.artlebedev.com/everything/optimus/
Oz
Re Four times the screen means #
Posted Wednesday 23rd September 2009 12:00 GMT
"Four times the prawn!"
That's as maybe, but you're going to go even blinder yanking your crank to an image on that small a screen!
Anonymous Coward
Erm...yeah...no thanks #
Posted Wednesday 23rd September 2009 13:09 GMT
I can't really see much point to this.
I miiiight be useful if you had a load of gadgetry and widgets on the Windows sidebar and wanted to offload them to a separate tiny screen next to your keyboard but I don't know anyone who actually has the sidebar turned on.
Maybe to display stocks and shares or something?
matthew maclean
Great idea #
Posted Wednesday 23rd September 2009 13:09 GMT
I think its a good idea. I'd have system monitors, music playlist and El Reg RSS feeds on the small screens. (also maybe some mini PRAWN)!
Andy Barber
Man Who Fell To Earth #
Posted Wednesday 23rd September 2009 13:09 GMT
That's nothing; David Bowie watched 12 TV's, at the same time, in the above mentioned film!
lukewarmdog
could be handy #
Posted Wednesday 23rd September 2009 13:09 GMT
If they can be programmed to display what you want.
Graphic equalisers, scratch pads, racing games, ventrilo, links to websites for MMO players to see if it's worth bashing a particular mobs head in or to stock markets for those more financially informed.
Course it could turn out to be completely pointless. I reserve judgement.
Steve Mason
games #
Posted Wednesday 23rd September 2009 13:09 GMT
guarantee they'll have some uses in games assuming the developers code for it... flight sims with extra instrument panels, racing games with side/rear mirrors, MMORPG's with statistics and chat windows just to throw a few ideas out.
WoW already does similar with the logitech G15 style keyboards.
Popperist
Major UI rethink required #
Posted Wednesday 23rd September 2009 13:10 GMT
You could do some good stuff with this but you would have to be brave enough to rethink some of the user interface - not something that most windowing systems really allow.
f'rinstance, all the the big display is used for active work and all menus, pop-ups and messages on the little'uns. Like function keys only you can see what they do.
Given the coservatism of most application developers it is doomed to highly customised stuff helping UPS drivers and traffic wardens.
Gordon861
Could be useful #
Posted Wednesday 23rd September 2009 13:51 GMT
These would be a lot more useful if they were standalone and plugged into the USB port.
Pulling up info like who's speaking on Teamspeak/Ventrillo or using them as configurable keyboards for game would be great.
sT0rNG b4R3 duRiD
3 more screens eh? #
Posted Wednesday 23rd September 2009 14:45 GMT
Hmm... great. Maybe when I get another 3 pairs of eyes. Or maybe I should get another head like Zaphod.
Psymon
Interesting #
Posted Wednesday 23rd September 2009 15:48 GMT
those who cry "what's the point in so many screens?" clearly aren't power users.
I have 3 widescreen LCDs on my work machine, and it's still not enough for all the systems I'm managing and monitoring.
At home I have 3 LCDs, and a projector (cloned off the centre screen). Middle screen is used for central activities (movies, games, net etc.) while my two 'wing mirrors' are used for utils such as volume control, music players, task manager, download managers etc.
So, yes, I can see a point to more screen acreage.
As for battery? OLED screes are significantly more efficient than LCDs, and running them constantly would have less impact than accessing a CD/DVD for just a few minutes.
No, where I become sceptical is the touchscreen element. Not entirely sure how well it would work on a screen that small. Even the Iphone has a bigger screen than that, and touch only JUST works.
You would have to be very careful designing the UI.
Aristotles slow and dimwitted horse
Like most IT "breakthroughs..." #
Posted Wednesday 23rd September 2009 16:11 GMT
It's a solution looking for a problem.
Anonymous Coward
Virtual Desktops #
Posted Wednesday 23rd September 2009 16:11 GMT
Could be a nice way to implement virtual desktops, with the other three being displayed on the mini screens?
Cameron Colley
Why three more? #
Posted Wednesday 23rd September 2009 20:27 GMT
Surely you could just have one long, thin, screen to divide as you wish?
@Tony72: I think there's more mileage in that concept myself -- Imagine being able to switch the keyboard from qwerty to classic azerty to dvorak to Nordic...