HP and PowerFilm working on futuristic solar powered ‘Dick Tracy’ watch

Hewlett-Packard is working on a wristwatch phone that gets power from the sun. I know your next question: why did it take this long?  This new gizmo is strictly for the U.S. millitary, and that prototype won’t be ready for another year, according to the Palo Alto printing and computer company. “We call it a Dick Tracy watch,” said Carl Taussig, director of information surfaces at HP Labs to CNN  in reference to the comic book hero’s high-tech wristwatch communicator.

The breakthrough is credited to a thin strip of metal-coated plastic that’s only 50 microns thick — about half the width of a human hair.   The plastic screen is lighter, less prone to damage, and, according to Taussig, uses 40 times less raw material than glass displays.  The power requirement is so modest it can be satisfied with a flexible solar panel printed right onto the watch or any other portable gadget you may desire. These are supplied by PowerFilm, developers of the military’s solar power tents.  The screen’s potential flexibility opens up new display capabilities for soldiers in the field requiring securely transmitted strategic visuals. The solar power makes them more reliable, a big plus in a life threatening scenario.

But the big win is they are less dependent on supplying their own power. Not having to carry a mobile phone, with that cumbersome battery; who knows what kind of warfighting innovations will follow. No more armored vehicles? Heavy transport planes? Soldiers who can fly on their own impetus? Only time will tell.
Big changes are in store. A display like this can function on a memory stick, or as a smart price tag, or anything!  Myself, for one,  can’t wait until a civilian version hits the market.