Cell phones with mini-projectors

Cell phones with mini-projectors

A few days before CEATEC, Microvision (MVIS) in Redmond, Wash., sent journalists an e-mail with the subject line "'09 year of tiny projectors?"

CEATEC offers evidence to support the idea. Miniature built-in projectors would make it easier to watch videos on a cellphone. On the first day of the show, Japan's biggest wireless operator NTT DoCoMo (DCM) drew large crowds to a special darkroom where it had two of these cell phone prototypes casting videos onto a nearby wall. One showed random clips, the other a live video feed from a cell phone set up outside the booth.

Nearby, KDDI, the second-biggest operator, also showcased a new handset concept with a mini-projector. Called Ply, it was conceived by 30-year-old designer Hideo Kambara (of the 28-cornered eraser fame) and has several thin layers, separating each feature as you might do with a stack of file folders. KDDI also had a futuristic phone model with a built-in solar panel for recharging and several others co-developed with Yamaha that double as musical instruments (harmonica phone, anyone?).