At the D8 conference Qualcomm CEO Paul Jacobs shed some more light on his company's very promising Mirasol display technology. It boasts a full-color picture for video, web surfing, and reading electronic magazines but also the low-power benefits of eInk. How low? Jacobs said depending on the usage and where you're using a Mirasol-powered device, users will see anywhere from a 10X to 100X increase in endurance. Another benefit is that you never have to power the display down, so you'll be able to just pick up an eReader with a Mirasol display and start using it.
Jacobs says that Qualcomm is starting with eReaders with enhanced functionality (think touch and multimedia), and the prototype on display here is a 5.7-inch panel. But the company is also looking to scale Mirasol down into smart phones and even watches. The only issue I see at the moment is that Mirasol's picture quality seems relatively washed out compared to the iPad, but I suspect a lot of people will want this technology inside their next gadget because of its outdoor readability.