NEC-Mitsubishi Electronics Display of America yesterday launched the 15-inch NEC LCD1565 and the 17-inch NEC 1765. Unlike conventional LCD (Liquid Crystal Displays) displays, the new offerings sport acrylic screens and flexible frames which allow them to be folded.
The collapsed packages weigh 8.6 pounds (3.9 kilograms) and 13.2 pounds (6 kilograms) respectively, the firm said in a statement.
Despite this feature, the price tags for the two monitors are no different from other LCD products in the market. The NEC LCD1565 is priced at US$349 and supports a maximum resolution of 1024 x 768 pixels. Its 17-inch counterpart, the NEC 1765, costs US$549 and offers 1280 x 1024 pixel resolution. Both products are currently sold in the U.S. only and availability for Asia remains unconfirmed.
"For the growing number of consumers eager to upgrade to an LCD monitor, portability will be a differentiating factor that will enable them to leverage the advantages of LCD technology in a variety of computing environments," said Sam Bhavnani, a display analyst with market research firm ARS.
Besides NEC-Mitsubishi, rival display makers have previewed similar offerings in the past year in a bid to tap into the burgeoning LCD market.
Samsung claims to the first to introduce foldable LCD screens with an 8.4-inch monochrome display which was showcased at the Korea e-book industry tradeshow last April.
Unlike NEC-Mitsubishi's collapsible offerings which are targeted at desktop users, Samsung's Black and White monitor is meant as a display for electronic books. In light of its niche application, the 8.4-inch screen uses Cholesteric LCD technology, a feature which allows the monitor to retain images even without a power supply.
According to DisplaySearch, a firm specializing in flat panel display market research, shipments of 10-inch or larger LCDS rose to a record 18.7 million units during the fourth quarter of last year, a 27 percent surge from the same period in 2001.
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