Is That A Pocket Projector?

Microvision is set to unveil pocket-sized projector at CES. They’ve been talking about this device for a while now, and will soon offer a preview of SHOW. SHOW is a pda-sized projector that uses Microvision’s PicoP display engine to project an image anywhere from 12 inches to 100 inches in size that’s always in focus. The device is also said to last 2.5 hours on a single charge, which is enough to watch a full length movie.

SHOW is approximately 7mm thick and can project a widescreen WVGA resolution image from any number of mobile devices. The device is said to connect directly to laptops, mobile phones, portable media players, and digital cameras. Imagine in the future you can store a movie on your mobile phone and watch it at full resolution 100 inches anywhere. This opens up new doors for mobile gaming, as well as dates at the park with a portable screen.

There are some obvious drawbacks, such as the relatively short runtime and added bulk of carrying the projector with you. Pricing and availability are not officially available. It also begs an interesting question: Would you prefer your device to have a TV-Out port, or would you prefer a pocket projector?

I also hope they rename it, as ‘pocket projector’ is extremely close to ‘pocket protector’, which conjures up all sorts of uncool images.