Press Release

E INK AND EPSON ACHIEVE WORLD-LEADING ePAPER RESOLUTION

E Ink Holdings Inc. and Seiko Epson Corporation (Epson) today announced the joint development of a 300-dpi electronic paper device with razor-sharp text and images for ePaper DocumentReader.Combining E Ink high-resolution ePaper display and Epson high-speed display controller platform, the new device will enable the world highest resolution ePaper tablets. With sharply improved readability and ease-of-use the ePaper Document Reader is expected to catch on in business and education settings where huge amounts of data have to be processed, as well as in countries that use character-based text, including Japan and China.

Thin, lightweight, energy-efficient eReaders with easy-to-read, paper-like displays have won over consumers, who are snapping up ePaper devices in unprecedented numbers, causing the market to surge. Demand has also been on the rise in business and education, market segments that require exactly what ePaper provides: the fast and accurate display of enormous amounts of information. Applications in these segments demand higher resolution than that offered by today 160-dpi displays due to the need to crisply render, with smooth gradations, engineering diagrams, illustrations, Asian characters, and other fine or intricate content. These market segments also demand faster page navigation and sophisticated user interfaces to allow instant viewing of vast amounts of data.
As the adoption of eReaders continues to rise worldwide, the opportunities for our EPD technology are expanding in new market segments including business and education, said Scott Liu, chairman of E Ink. We continue to improve E Ink technology to meet the demands of our customers and the needs of consumers, and this new EPD delivers the low power, sunlight readability and thin, lightweight form factor users have come to expect from E Ink at an even higher resolution.

We developed this device specifically to meet the high data demands of business and academia, said Torao Yajima, managing director at Epson. Our IC controller and processing power enables the display to handle large files while maintaining the excellent display control and operability found in today EPDs, including fast page navigation and a sophisticated user interface. Epson high speed controller platform is an ideal choice for developers who wish to develop high resolution eTablets with ease and within a very short period. The respective roles of E Ink and Epson and the products they offer are described below.