A Practical LCD Writing Tablet 171
An anonymous reader passes along a word about an innovative LCD writing tablet. The Boogie Board costs $30, can be written on with a stylus or a fingernail, and uses no power in the act of writing. Only erasing consumes power — from a watch battery, which lasts for 50,000 erases. The total cost per "page" comes out to only 1/15th that of steno paper. The writing surface is pressure-sensitive and "highly responsive to variable amounts of pressure," so you can make thick and thin lines.
Re:Automatic erasing etch-a-sketch (Score:4, Interesting)
"I want to jot down a small note that I can hardcopy later for posterity, but I don't ever want to need to worry about my pen running out of ink, as long as I remember to change the battery occasionally"
Indeed, that seems to be all it is really good for -- other than the geek factor of writing with passive liquid crystals.
I solved the "I don't want to run out of ink" problem by buying a Fisher Bullet Space Pen. The ink cartridges are said to last a very long time and never run dry from disuse. So, for the meager amount of writing that I do, this pen will probably be able to stay in my change pocket for many years before it needs the cartridge replaced. And it was $10 cheaper than this "practical" LCD tablet.
No saving? Here's why... (Score:4, Interesting)
It looks to me that this is not an electronic device, per se. There's no ability to save because it does not detect the presence of a writing object or the state of the surface. It seems to be just a really crappy, but durable, LCD screen. When you apply pressure, you displace the liquid crystal material. And when you "erase" the board, it applies electricity to redistribute everything. In order to add saving features, the "energy-efficient" part of the device that seems to be one of the major selling points would pretty much have to go down the drain.
This is not meant to be a permanent record, and I don't know why they relate it to a pad of paper... it's more like a monochrome dry erase board.
(I am not affiliated with the makers; I have never seen one of these up close and personal; The above writing is based purely on assumption from looking at pictures and reading what it does)
Re:you used the word practical why? (Score:5, Interesting)
Many years ago I was going to have jaw surgery. I was going to be wired shut for about seven weeks. They told me to bring a paper tablet and a pen. I went to the toy store to pick up one of the pads called magic slates in the midwest. I came across a new toy called a Magna Doodle.
This is two sheets of plastic with white oil and iron fillings (or something similar) you had a magnetic wand and the back has a wide magnet.
When you write on the surface with the wand the dark particals move to the front and turn it dark and the slider on the bottom wipes it back out.
The doctors/nurses had never seen one and would borrow it at the start of each shift and show it at the daily meetings.
Not pressure sensitive, but I think it does most everything else the board does
Re:Automatic erasing etch-a-sketch (Score:2, Interesting)
Have you ever tried to jot a quick note on an Etch A Sketch? It's much more like a Magna Doodle [wikipedia.org].
Re:demo please? (Score:4, Interesting)
I actually didn't know there was such you controlled with two knobs too. Sounds a bit hard and limiting. Magna Doodle [wikipedia.org] is probably a little bit closer with its pen and free drawing.
The Etch A Sketch toy was invented in the late 1950s by a man by the name of Arthur Granjean invented something he called ``L'Ecran Magique", the magic screen, in his garage. The inside surface of the glass screen is coated with aluminum powder which is then scraped off by a movable stylus, leaving a dark line on the light gray screen.
and Magna Doodle
The key element of the Magna Doodle is the magnetophoretic display panel, filled with a thick, opaque white liquid containing tiny dark magnetic particles. These particles can be drawn to the surface by the stylus or the shapes, or to the hidden back side by a sliding eraser bar. The middle layer is divided into a honeycomb of cells, keeping the liquid static and the particles evenly distributed across the panel. The liquid is formulated so that the particles can be pulled through it in response to the magnetic forces, but not due to gravity.
Interesting concept though. I always wanted to know how it worked :)
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Re:Use the tools you already have. (Score:3, Interesting)
This beats shifting my eyes 6" to the left to read the post-it note without my hands leaving the keyboard/rodent. Win!