DISPLAYTECH MICRODISPLAY FEATURED IN AWARD-WINNING MINOLTA DIGITAL CAMERA
Validates Microdisplays as a State-of-the-Art Solution Available to Consumer Electronics OEMs Today
LONGMONT, Colo., August 13, 2001 -- Displaytech Inc., the leader in the design, development, manufacturing and marketing of ferroelectric liquid crystal (FLC) microdisplays, today announced a majorVALidation of its consumer electronics component supplier initiative. The DiMAGE 7, a new digital still camera (DSC) manufactured by Minolta, which features Displaytech's LightView QVGA display module as a viewfinder, has won the Best Digital Prosumer* Camera award from the Technical Imaging Press Association (TIPA).
TIPA consists of representatives from 31 professional camera and imaging magazines in 13 European countries. Since 1991, the association has given awards annually for the best photographic and imaging products of the year. The DiMAGE 7 won the award as part of the organization's Best Photo Products in Europe 2001 - 2002 awards. The TIPA awards are widely recognized as the Oscars of the photographic industry.
"The fact that our microdisplay is featured in an award-winning consumer electronics product is a significantVALidation for microdisplays as a viable and leading-edge solution available to consumer electronics manufacturers today," said Haviland Wright, Displaytech's CEO and chairman of the board. "At Displaytech, our core business is making displays for consumer electronics products that are popular and selling in stores today. This camera was only on the market for roughly a month before winning this award. It clearly represents an outstanding achievement in the DSC market, and we are proud to have been able to contribute to its innovative design."
The DiMAGE 7 won the award because of its outstanding basic functions include the camera's numerous features that appeal to even professional photographers.
Displaytech's QVGA display module is the basis of Minolta's Digital Hyper Viewfinder (EVF). The EVF functions as an information center, showing a full array of shooting information and monitoring effects of image manipulation and control. Displaytech's microdisplay provides photographers with clear images, even under bright light, and delivers a visual resolution equivalent to almost 220,000 pixels. The variable position viewfinder can be tilted up to 90 degrees, and allows photographers to simultaneously monitor the image and camera settings.
Displaytech's LightView QVGA Display Module uses the company's proprietary FLC material, which switches faster than common liquid crystals, translating to smoother, more accurate image reproduction. With a pixel resolution of 320X240, the tiny 0.19" screen easily displays full-color images and accurately represents text. Because of its small form factor, the QVGA uses significantly less power than conventional displays, meaning the battery life of digital cameras is greatly extended.
About Displaytech
Longmont, Colo.-based Displaytech makes and sells microdisplays with superior image quality to performance-driven consumer electronics companies, providing sustainable competitive advantages to their digital still cameras, camcorders, business projectors, projection TVs and mobile communication devices. Displaytech offers high-quality, patented ferroelectric liquid crystal (FLC) display products through its LightView and LightCaster® product lines -- which use less power and have smaller form factors -- allowing for product design innovation and meeting tough manufacturing demands. Established partnerships with industry-leading manufacturers and proven manufacturing capabilities also position Displaytech to keep pace with the challenges of the high-volume consumer electronics market. For more information visit www.displaytech.com.
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*professional consumer -- consumers who purchase products with professional specifications
LightView is a trademark, and LightCaster is a U.S. registered trademark of Displaytech Inc.