Samsung Demos 2560x1600 10.1" Tablet. iPad 3 Retina Next?

[michael zaletel]

TUAW reports...

http://www.tuaw.com/2011/05/12/samsung-announces-2560-x-1600-display-could-pave-the-way-for-ip/

Samsung will demonstrate an all-new 10.1-inch display at the SID Display Week 2011 International Symposium next week. Samsung's new display will have a 2560 x 1600 resolution, far in excess of anything on the tablet market today. At 300 dpi, the display also compares favorably with the Retina Display resolution of Apple's iPhone 4; meanwhile, Samsung claims the PenTile technology used in the display allows it to operate while drawing 40 percent less power.

-michael zaletel

 

[AnthonyFlores]

This was great news. Though some seem to think it clashes with the potential of iPad 3 to have 3D capability ... but I would guess that this is more likely to happen than 3D on the next version .... exciting times for us Apple geeks

 

[Subhadip Sen]

I would rather see a 24" 4K display!

 

[Jeff Kilgroe]

This was great news. Though some seem to think it clashes with the potential of iPad 3 to have 3D capability ... but I would guess that this is more likely to happen than 3D on the next version .... exciting times for us Apple geeks

Does not clash with potential 3D at all. In fact, it could be the LCD screen that enables it! When installing an autostereoscopic parallax barrier, you have to effectively cut your horizontal screen resolution in half. So a 3D iPad would need at least 2048 horizontal pixels to maintain the current 1024 pixels while doing 3D. If Apple finds a way to make a parallax barrier that could function bi-directionally, meaning that the 3D effect could work as the user rotated the iPad to either horizontal or vertical orientation, then this LCD could potentially run at 1280x800 in full auto-stereo 3D.

OK while speculation aside... I doubt this specific panel and this specific resolution will make it into the next iPad. Only because this particular screen has a 16:9 aspect ratio, whereas the current iPad is 4:3. But that said, there's no reason a 2048x1536 ~300dpi panel could not be made the same way and fit into the existing iPad dimensions. It could provide stereo viewing or 4X the number of pixels that would evenly scale existing iPad software. So if Apple does go with a higher resolution for the next iPad, this will most likely be it.

One important factor to consider however is that 4X the number of pixels means it needs 4X the amount of GPU bandwidth. 4X to 16X the amount of texel processing horsepower, depending on which GPU operation is being performed. Generally speaking, for a screen jump like this on the next iPad, it would definitely benefit from a faster CPU, but more importantly, it would probably need a substantially faster GPU. Or another huge leap forward in GPU power similar to that which occurred going from iPad1 to iPad2. I think all that will happen, the question is when it will happen. Those who still expect it later this year are probably dreaming. But I think by this time next year, we'll know the answer.

 

[Hrvoje Simic]

Perfect for Tegra 3 which will be out in couple of months.

 

[AnthonyFlores]

Does not clash with potential 3D at all. In fact, it could be the LCD screen that enables it! When installing an autostereoscopic parallax barrier, you have to effectively cut your horizontal screen resolution in half. So a 3D iPad would need at least 2048 horizontal pixels to maintain the current 1024 pixels while doing 3D. If Apple finds a way to make a parallax barrier that could function bi-directionally, meaning that the 3D effect could work as the user rotated the iPad to either horizontal or vertical orientation, then this LCD could potentially run at 1280x800 in full auto-stereo 3D.

OK while speculation aside... I doubt this specific panel and this specific resolution will make it into the next iPad. Only because this particular screen has a 16:9 aspect ratio, whereas the current iPad is 4:3. But that said, there's no reason a 2048x1536 ~300dpi panel could not be made the same way and fit into the existing iPad dimensions. It could provide stereo viewing or 4X the number of pixels that would evenly scale existing iPad software. So if Apple does go with a higher resolution for the next iPad, this will most likely be it.

One important factor to consider however is that 4X the number of pixels means it needs 4X the amount of GPU bandwidth. 4X to 16X the amount of texel processing horsepower, depending on which GPU operation is being performed. Generally speaking, for a screen jump like this on the next iPad, it would definitely benefit from a faster CPU, but more importantly, it would probably need a substantially faster GPU. Or another huge leap forward in GPU power similar to that which occurred going from iPad1 to iPad2. I think all that will happen, the question is when it will happen. Those who still expect it later this year are probably dreaming. But I think by this time next year, we'll know the answer.

Thanks Jeff, I was referring to the previous debate between you and others -- where someone was basically stating that it would be nearly impossible to have both 3D and "retina" level dpi on the same panel. But I understand your point.

Also, I agree with you 1000% on timing. If there's one thing that Apple is guilty of, it's saving big features for ensuing product releases -- so they continually have something new to market at each launch. I'm not sure which is more imminent, but my guess is that a higher res screen is a little bit more straightforward -- or less of an engineering leap -- than going 3D. So my guess would be "retina" and some other features on iPad 3 and then 3D on iPad 4. But then again, maybe 2013 is too long to wait for the 3D version, since the demand is going up fast ...

Either way, it's exciting times to be a tech geek, I must say