So I got my fingers on an iPhone 4 on the Verizon network today, and I was pretty excited. But soon afterwards, I began to wonder what AT&T would come out with next that would oppress any Verizon iPhone user. (like the iPhone 5GLTE-S.E.X.-40,000 L or whatever) But what i did find was a very interesting concept phone called the ‘Second Life’. The Second Life Mobile Phone concept works on the premise that we often forget about the battery life of our mobile phones, hence run out of juice, just at the wrong time. As a remedy (rather power-saver-option) the phone incorporates a double display. When in active use the AMOLED screen powers up in all glory and in standby mode the E-ink display gets active. This essentially means that the E-ink uses very little energy and the degree of transparency of the display shows how much battery is remaining. The more transparent the display, the less battery remaining. So besides ultra-low power consumption, the transparent screen offers an intuitive expression: “You’re low on juice so better recharge the phone soon!” Apparently the E-ink uses power to change the degree of transparency and doesn’t add to the battery load. I love the idea behind the concept and its transparent vibe, but I guess its more aimed at a niche set of people who keep forgetting to put their phone on charge.
