Paperless paper
From Paperless Office
Paperless paper is an oxymoronic term that usually is used to refer to digital ink, e-ink or e-paper. These technologies utilize a polymer film containing a large number of microcapsules. Each microcapsule contains fluid with light and dark colors. By charging the microcapsules in different ways, the light or dark particles can be made to move to the top of the microcapsule.
By arranging a large number of microcapsules on a plastic film and arranging circuitry to charge specific microcapsules one way or another, a flexible screen is created that displays images and text similarly to the way that paper displays information. The result is paperless paper--or something with properties similar to paper, but that can be rewritten instead of being thrown away.
Some of the advantages of paperless paper include:
- Paperless paper requires very little energy so it is ideally suited for devices that need a long battery life.
- Once the charge is applied, paperless paper keeps the image without requiring constant energy like an LCD screen.
- Paperless paper can be designed to be flexible which makes it more resistant to breaking.
- Unlike other display technologies, paperless paper can be read easily in bright sunlight.
Some disadvantages of paperless paper:
- Paperless paper is not as high of contrast as regular paper. It tends to be black text on a grey background.
- It takes some time for the microcapsules to switch. While it is usually fast enough for a page turn, it isn't fast enough for video or any other type of smooth motion effects.
- Paperless paper doesn't currently support color in any consumer devices.
