The Daylight DC-1 is an e-ink pill with out the e-ink

The Daylight Pc Firm’s first product, the DC-1, is an Android pill with an uncommon twist. It makes use of a proprietary show expertise known as “Reside Paper,” stated to imitate the e-ink shows on gadgets just like the Amazon Kindle with none lag or flashing. Which means whereas it is monochrome, it operates at 60 frames per second, and might run nearly any app that works on Android, together with issues like Spotify and Google Docs.

The pill’s 10.5-inch, 1600×1200 display does have a backlight, however one which intentionally omits blue in an try and be softer on the eyes. You’ll be able to swap off the backlight completely when you’re in direct daylight. The display additionally makes use of a matte panel with a textured floor, designed to copy the texture of paper. A bundled Wacom stylus would not must be charged, because it’s purely passive.

Beneath the hood is a MediaTek Helio G99 processor paired with 8GB of RAM, 128GB of storage, and stereo audio system. Which may not sound like a lot, however the DC-1’s customized model of Android 13 — Sol:OS — is intentionally minimalist, principally meant to focus you on studying, writing, and notetaking, as you’d count on. The pill even has Kindle-style page-turning/customizable motion buttons. Different conveniences embrace Wi-Fi 6, Bluetooth 5.0, a microSD slot, and a USB-C port. The system is powered by an 8,000mAh battery, which Daylight says ought to final days on a single cost.

When is the DC-1 launching?

Daylight is taking pre-orders for the DC-1, however solely in batches, and the primary two — transport in July and August — are already bought out. If you wish to get in on the September batch, you possibly can pre-order a Founders Version mannequin now for $729. A cloth case must be included within the field someday this fall. Notice that whereas some images present a keyboard accent, this is not bundled — it is truly a separate Logitech product. You may have to purchase your individual Bluetooth keyboard.

Easy efficiency has been the hardest problem with real e-ink. Whereas framerates have improved, e-ink will depend on electrically charged capsules that “freeze” in place for every body. This eliminates energy consumption for static photos, and is less complicated on the eyes, however makes it inherently slower than applied sciences like LCD or OLED. That is why it is used primarily with e-readers and notetaking gadgets, since framerate would not matter once you’re taking a look at a e book or PDF doc. Experiments with telephones, laptops, and traditional tablets have but to achieve a lot traction available in the market.