Mobile Phone Screen technology: Super AMOLED display

Mobile Phone Screen technology: Super AMOLED display

Over the past three years from the introduction of the iPhoneto thelatest mobile operating system Windows Phone 7, mobile phones have been getting rapidly more sophisticated and have been transformed with the introduction of applications. However, though it is the software apps and operating systems that have dominated headlines, this functionality would not be possible without supporting developments in hardware. For example all those HTC Desires and iPhone 4s would be almost inoperable without the help of speedy 1GHZ Snapdragon processors. Similarly, web browsing and photo viewing would be futile without the support of robust mobile phone screens.

Indeed Samsung has been pulling customers away from smartphone titans HTC and Apple with the astonishing super AMOLED screens on its top-end mobile phones like the Omnia 7 and Galaxy S. But what makes Samsung's screens so super? Read on an understanding of how mobile phone screens function and what makes a super AMOLED display stand out.

TFT LCD screens

For some time the industry average for touch screen mobile phones was TFT LCD thin film transistor liquid crystal display. TFT LCDs were a significant advance over previous cathode ray tube displays (CRTs) for being more lightweight, reliable and cheaper.

However, liquid crystals are unable to directly emit light and so TFT LCD screens also require a backlight. So a TFT LCD screen has several layers back light, liquid crystal, touch screen sensors and outer window. These extra layers blunt the image and colour.

AMOLED screens

The next progressions from TFT LCD displays are AMOLED screens (active-matrix organic light-emitting diode screen). An OLED screen is also specific type of thin film display. However unlike a TFT LCD it is able to generate its own light using organic compounds. This makes an OLED display thinner than a TFT LCD as it does away with the back light layer. The active matrix' the AM of AMOLED is the technology that orders the display's pixels allowing it to display finer images with stronger colour.

Importantly for smartphones with their wide range of battery-sucking features, an AMOLED screen uses less power than an LCD screen.

Next generation AMOLED screens

Samsung is the most high profile manufacturer to take AMOLED screens a step further by incorporating touch screen sensors directly into the display screen. These super AMOLED' displays operate as an AMOLED screen does but without the need for an additional layer of capacitive touch screen sensors.

Though the name isn't quite as evocative as the iPhone 4's "Retina Display", Samsung's super AMOLED screens have certainly given devices like the Samsung Omnia 7 a competitive edge. Reviewing it, the display resolution is superb. It's especially well suited to the Windows Phone 7 interface Microsoft's vivid menus and windows pop with rich colour. The brightness levels are also up on the average, which gives solid black and a crisp contrast ratio. By reducing the number of layers and the spaces between them, the screen is also more usable in direct sunlight than most OLED mobile phone screens and has a wider viewing angle.

Screens of the Future

For now the super AMOLED screen is at the highest end of mobile phone screen technology. But how will screens develop in the future? Manufacturers are currently working on solutions for common complaints, such as widening viewing angles and the strength of colours in direct sunlight. This will be even more important as tablet devices increase in uptake and users come to expect more visual functionality of their phones, tablets and e-readers.

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