TechDomino
It hasn’t been long since we posted about the Galaxy Note 10.1, and aside from the size (10-inch slates are not as popular as their 7-inch counterparts), there were only things to praise. We have recently learned more about the technology used in the device’s display, and this bit of new information is certain to please some while leaving others slightly disappointed: Samsung’s Galaxy Note 10.1 2014 edition will come with a RGBW (PenTile) display.
PenTile is a trademark of Samsung and it refers to the “subpixel layouts” that are used in RGBW displays. In normal (RGB) screens, each pixel consists of three subpixels: a red, a green, and a blue one. The setup used in the new Note 10.1 is a little different. Each pixel is made of just two subpixels: either a red and a green one, or a blue and a white (or rather, clear) one. This configuration allows for more light to come through.
There are several advantages to having a device with a PenTile display. The most widely cited of those is, perhaps, the boost it gives to the brightness (aiding in situations like when you need to interact with your device under intense sunlight). The increased battery life is also a point worth mentioning: the RGBW display may reduce power usage by up to 30%!
Unfortunately, the PenTile display is somewhat notorious (especially among the tech aficionados out there) for making the graphics look “washed out” – it effectively reduces the density of the “colored” subpixels. Overall, this “evolution” of displays seems counterintuitive – one would have imagined that the screens would become capable of displaying more vivid images over time.
While the PenTile technology is not new per se (it’s been around since 2008), there is much hype around it now (both praise and criticism), so we thought it would be a nice exercise to try and understand what’s involved – now that it seems to have been the selected display type for the Note 10.1
What do you think?
