'Big-Screen' Video on a Cell Phone?

I have to confess that I'm not much attracted to the idea of watching a movie on the tiny screen of my cell phone. Why not just read a magazine or newspaper? Oh that's right, people don't read anymore. So maybe there is a market for mobile video after all.

This story from today makes the idea seem more feasible:

Kopin and MicroOptical Bring ''Big Screen'' Video to Cell Phone Users

Sometimes with partnership announcements like this it's a little hard to pick them apart to figure out who does what. But as I understand it, MicroOptical makes video-capable eyewear products and Kopin makes the display technology that is going to allow wide-screen video to be displayed via a wearable display. To add to the party, today's announcement says that this video service is going to be offered by France Telecom's Orange SA and delivered over Samsung phones.

Glad I was able to make that clear.

Reading this announcement, it sounds as if what the user will be able to do is put on a pair of eyeglasses (said to be "sleek" and "stylish"), plug them into their cell phone, and watch a hi-res movie (or TV and Internet content) in their field of vision. All this is supposed to be available in October 2005. Today's release says the eyewear will be able to play five hours of video on three AAA batteries.

One of my perpetual complaints about company Web sites is that they give huge volumes of product data, specs, comparison charts, and endless bulleted lists but fail to visually show you a user-view of the product. I want to know what the user experience is like, and often I get everything but that.

Same problem with the MicroOptical and Kopin Web sites. Here are some pictures showing what some of MicroOptical's eyewear products look like:

And here is a shot of one of Kopin's micro-displays:

How are we doing in terms of "sleekishness" and "stylishness"? So far I'm not feeling particularly reassured.

The best these companies seem to be able to provide in terms of portraying the user experience is this sort of conceptual icon:

(Again, the image of the eyewear here doesn't engender much confidence in the sense of style of this offering, does it?)

And I did manage to snap this shot from a demo video showing a video display within a user's field of vision:

Well, I'm poking fun, and I tend to be hyper-critical of technology marketing efforts. No doubt in the hands of France Telecom and Samsung, this offering will be marketed in a more compelling fashion. Today's press release gives this description -- read it and use your imagination:

"The sleek eyewear allows users to privately view large-size video or pictures equivalent to a 12-inch screen as seen from three feet away, yet simultaneously view their surroundings thanks to the small size of the frame and MicroOptical's patented optics which allow the user to see around the screen."

AB -- 7/7/05