- Get link
- Other Apps
- Get link
- Other Apps
Microvision agrees to co-develop projector
Microvision Inc., which makes laser-based projectors that can be embedded in hand-held devices, said Tuesday that it has signed an agreement with Motorola Inc. to develop a product for mobile applications. Terms of the accord weren't disclosed.
Redmond-based Microvision said it will work with the world's second-largest maker of mobile phones on a projector that uses its PicoP display technology to transfer images, video and movies from small mobile-device screens onto big screens and other surfaces.
"It's been expected and something that's very critical to the company's long-term operating model," said Joel Achramowicz, director of equity research at Santa Monica, Calif.-based MDB Capital Group LLC, which has underwritten secondary offerings in Microvision in the past 14 months.
The goal of the project with Motorola is to integrate Microvision's latest PicoP projector, based on its miniature Integrated Photonics Module, into a prototype handset for demonstration purposes, the companies said.
Rob Shaddock, the chief technology officer for Motorola's mobile devices, said in an e-mailed statement that the company sees "a number of potential use cases for the technology -- from business users who wish to share information or presentations 'on the fly' to consumers who want to share short video clips with their friends."
Microvision, which also makes displays for vehicles and the U.S. military, including for soldiers in the field, had revenue of $7 million last year.
Microvision shares rose 60 cents, or 12.37 percent, to $5.45 in Nasdaq Stock Market trading, their biggest percentage gain since January. More than 12 million shares were traded, nearly 16 times the three-month daily average. The stock has doubled in the past year.
Comments
The cell phone division has struck, the car display group has had some press, and even the print group has shown up in a couple of dozen patent filings. When is your head-gear group ever going to do anything?
ReplyDeleteHow quickly we forget, eh?... ;-)
ReplyDeleteMicrovision Awarded $3.2 Million Contract by U.S. Air Force to Advance Development of Lightweight, See-Through Color Eyewear Display
Stay tuned...!
Ben ... without obviously saying anything you shouldn't ... can you give ANY kind of rough, ballpark timeline you guys are looking at for something from the eyewear dept?
ReplyDeleteI think the issue is just people have diffinte timelines for everything but the eyewear and that is where some of the lack of confidence in the eyewear application.
So .... are you guys thinking of something by CES '08 ... SID '08 .... CES 2015??? Just kidding ... but in all seriousness, at this point that is about how it feels since I believe we feel totally in the dark with how this section is progressing.
Thanks.
Hey everyone,
ReplyDeleteI've been bugging Ben to give us particulars, too, but all these questions just point to the intense curiosity that Eyewear has aroused (I predicted augmented reality back around 1995 before I read about it anywhere - my prediction since 2001 was that it would be mainstream by 2011, and it looks like that timeline could still be on target). I'm guessing that there is all kinds of work being done behind the scenes at Microvision - the potential is too huge to just sit on it - but there is nothing substantive to announce right now in terms of a consumer product that's ready to roll. Right now PicoP for cellphones is "ready for prime-time" and that's what the publicity is focusing on. Sales of PicoP ought to provide Microvision with the money it needs to push the development of Eyewear (The "Next Big Thing") over the top. There are probably technical issues still to overcome for Eyewear (eg. I haven't heard specifics on how dark areas will be selectively produced and aligned with the laser-lit areas on the retina). And beyond that is the issue of mating the Eyewear with an equivalent high-tech device that will make it a truly must-have item, not just a curiosity. Eg. Apple had to get a LOT of "ducks in a row" to put out the iPhone (display, processor, OS, agreement with AT&T, FCC, etc.) and it still has room to improve. (Okay, I admit I'm waiting for the EyePhone That Will Change Everything.)