Colour e-paper technology will most likely be launched in e-reader devices for the Asian market.
New e-readers featuring colour e-paper could be made commercially available to Chinese consumers later this year.
The two biggest Chinese e-reader suppliers are Hanvon and Jinke, though +PE.com cannot confirm at this stage the company that intends to launch devices based on colour e-paper.
While demand for e-readers based on monochrome e-paper is growing, colour e-paper versions will need to be developed and commercialised in order to help the market grow further. However, prototypes of colour e-paper displays, particularly those based on electrophoretic technology, have been criticised for their inability to achieve good colour saturation. The result is displays that look washed out.
Despite such concerns, the Chinese e-reader supplier is intent on launching a colour device in order to gauge the level of consumer interest in such a product. Commercialising an e-reader with a colour display will enable the e-reader company and its display partners to see how the technology can best be exploited and developed further, based on consumer experience and feedback.