TCL Waterfall Tech Demo: Screen Edges Done Right
by Dr. Ian Cutress on September 5, 2019 2:00 PM EST- Posted in
- Smartphones
- Displays
- TCL
- Tech Demo
Modern edge display technology is a compromise between screen real estate, comfort, and aesthetics. Personally, I’ve never owned a Note, or a device with an excessive edge with edge-related technologies: I find the hold compromised and the edge features often don’t justify the discomfort. TCL is aiming for its Waterfall display to solve that.
The company was keen to point out that this isn’t a standard edge on a smartphone – the display wraps around to 80+ degrees, making it a more comfortable hold on both sides of the device. Being a display company, TCL also wanted the edge to maintain color reproducibility and to minimise any specific color shift in the design.
The demonstration devices TCL showed us were not interactive like the One Piece design, and played a fixed video on a loop to show how moving images and colors were dealt with based on the display technology. Discussions with TCL obviously extended to wearable technology with the display, to which the company stated that they are exploring multiple avenues.
Personally, a big thumbs up for tech demos.
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goatfajitas - Thursday, September 5, 2019 - link
Clearly you’ve never actually owned one because none of that has ever been an issue. Curved phones have been around for over three years now and they are breaking are dropping or having any other issues more than their flat counterparts. You may not like them and that’s fine I understand why but the reasons most people give her not realistic in actual usage.BurntMyBacon - Friday, September 6, 2019 - link
I have a Unicorn Beetle case for my work phone (Galaxy S8). It feels more secure that some of the others I've seen and only minimally (maybe a pixel or two on each side) covers the screen. It does make it a bit harder to actually touch the screen edges, but this has actually improved usability for me by preventing accidental screen touches. I'm not sure what the statistics for breaking these phones are compared to their flat counterparts. I wouldn't suggest that just because they've been around for three years is proof of equivalent durability, but I haven't yet broken a phone, so I can't really comment. I think most people who complain about it are more complaining about their inability to get a grip that they feel is secure without inadvertently triggering some function. My case helps me out there, but I don't know how to achieve that goal without it.Tams80 - Saturday, September 7, 2019 - link
I've had multiple phones with curved displays have the curved part become damaged, and in a couple of cases, cracks start from the curved parts of the display because they just weren't protected.s.yu - Sunday, September 8, 2019 - link
S8 was known to be especially vulnerable, but S6, S7, S9 and S10 don't have known durability issues.0ldman79 - Tuesday, September 10, 2019 - link
We've actually had a lot of curved screen phones brought to the shop.It's hard to say percentage wise, but there's been a pretty massive influx over the last six months or so, shortly after I start seeing them around.
PeachNCream - Thursday, September 5, 2019 - link
Are those edges touch sensitive? If so, how do I pick it up or hold it without activating functions by accident? How to you put a phone like that into a case without covering up portions of the visible screen area? It seems like this could be a functionally detrimental feature.yhelothar - Thursday, September 5, 2019 - link
Even worse, it's extra prone to breaking on drops and thus necessitating a stronger case.yhelothar - Thursday, September 5, 2019 - link
It essentially looks cool in reviews and in pictures but it's practically worthless. Add to the fact that when you watch a movie or view pictures, the edge of the image is distorted and some not visible without turning the phone on the side.goatfajitas - Thursday, September 5, 2019 - link
Just wait for stuff like this... https://mashable.com/video/iphone-11-concept-desig...s.yu - Sunday, September 8, 2019 - link
The sides would be slightly more vulnerable but not that different from current curved screens. The edges of the case would simply cover only the midframe, but any case with decent protection should be thick enough to protect the screen in most cases, often by thick edges on the top and bottom propping up the unit to prevent the screen from coming into contact with a flat surface, however if it falls onto some irregular rocks it would probably shatter.