Imagine tossing all of the reminders scattered across your desk and instead having your phone send a to-do list to a scrap of e-paper that never needs charging. That’s essentially what Microsoft Research has done with this cute Polaroid-esque display.
According to a paper presented at the User Interface Software and Technology conference this week, the device uses a small photovoltaic cell, which harvests energy from ambient light, to power a simple e-ink display and low-energy Bluetooth chip. E-ink, now more than a decade old, is particularly well-suited to such applications because it only uses power when it changes what’s shown on the display.
Speaking to New Scientist, Tobias Grosse-Puppendahl from Microsoft Research said that the device “could be used just like a Post-It note [that] could be reused, synchronized with notes in other locations, and could be programmed to show up-to-date information.” When the lighting conditions in the room are optimal, the device is able to receive an update from a computer or smartphone and refresh its display every minute. Hopefully that’s faster than the accretion rate of your to-do list.
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