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Comment by seanieb

2 days ago

Why is e-ink still so expensive?

I would guess there's not enough volume due to limited use-cases of the tech compared to more traditional screens.

The typical e-ink uses cases boil down to e-readers, dumb-phones, and hobbyists, which is not a huge market. Anything niche or specialized tends to carry a higher cost.

  • There are probably billions of e-ink price tags in supermarkets around the world, but I guess scaling it up is not easy?

The prices on Ali Express for e-ink are not that bad, but certainly can't get anything as big as the Mira Pro. The Boox premium is plug and play compatibility, high fidelity/refresh rate and support.

Patents

  • Really? Feels like there's a bunch of companies

    • It is complex. The early patents have expired, so a bunch of companies wouldn't surprise me. I can't follow the chains, but it appears that there are not really a bunch of companies, it is one company (maybe two) that makes just the displays and sells to others.

It's cheap if you are buying the small displays they use at supermarkets. No business is buying these massive displays.

Ya it’s so stupid, I’ve been wanting a display for over a decade and prices haven’t budged.