VR screens could get a big upgrade soon

Porotech’s emerging DynamicPixelTuning (DPT) aims to replace traditional LED as we know it with clearer, crisper everyday displays.    

What does it mean?

The announcement comes with a video of the prototype at work and makes grand promises. Porotech CEO and co-founder Dr. Tongtong Zhu says DPT “offers radical improvements in TV, signage, and smart wearables in both consumer and professional contexts.”

The technology itself lends a simple fix to a quality-of-life problem that has plagued the tech industry for years. A traditional pixel expresses red, blue or green color. The human eye perceives the trio in combination as white. DPT, meanwhile, makes each pixel capable of outputting every color. 

OK — but what’s the point?

Porotech states that, in theory, this modification will offer displays four times the resolution. For smaller displays like phones and watches, this difference could be pretty noticeable. But according to Dr. Zhu, the possibilities go even further.

AR (augmented reality) and VR (virtual reality) spaces and technologies stand to benefit in particular. Given that both attempt immersion at close-range (headset displays), clarity, color and definition are priority number one. They stand to get a good glow-up with Porotech’s advent.

How exactly does it work?

With a new class of Gallium Nitride materials at work, the microLED chip produces a modulated current. This emits visible light, covering the whole color spectrum and including pure white. In the past, pure white has only been produced by the combination red, blue and green pixels together. 

Looking to the future

The inability of traditional pixels to express spectrum color is what Dr. Zhu calls a “fundamental technical and engineering problem,” which Porotech claims to have solved.

“By allowing pixels to move beyond RGB and quadrupling the resolution of any given display,” Zhu says, “DPT is set to unlock new uses for displays in every segment of society.”

It may seem a small fix — literally pixel-sized — but the implications are far-reaching. Porotech claims to have broken ground, but with only prototyping available, we can’t yet say for sure. But never fear — the public can view the tech at CES next year.

Maddy Cowee
Maddy Cowee
Maddy Cowee is a writer, editor and film student.

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