Samsung buys color “E Ink” firm Liquavista

By Ian Bell Published January 23, 2011

The Samsung Group obviously has a growing interest in small, energy efficient displays. With devices like the Galaxy S smartphone and the Galaxy Tab tablet posting strong sales, the company is well positioned in several mobile markets and has the position to leverage such cutting edge technology.

On Thursday, Samsung announced that it would be acquiring a Netherlands firm named Liquavista. The acquisition seems like primarily an intellectual property purchase. Liquavista, based out of Eindhoven, is a spinoff of Phillips Research Labs and has developed a new kind of electrowetting display technology, which could serve as a replacement to LCD screens.

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Electrowetting offers lower power and higher transmittance than LCD displays. One of the most common production electrowetting technologies on the market today is E Ink, the displays used in the Amazon Kindle and their ilk.

Researchers have had difficulty, though, applying electrowetting to color screens. But Liquavista seems to have the problem solved. It claims to have created a color display that uses 10 percent of the power of current LCD panels, while doubling the transmittance (like LCD screens, electrowetting displays require backlighting or reflective lighting; transmittance measures how much light makes it through the colorful layer — hence how bright and colorful the viewed light will be).

In its press release, Samsung writes that the technology has “applications in e-readers, mobile phones, media players and other mobile devices.”

Response times has always been a problem for electrowetting displays, making them impractical for active tasks, like showing a graphical user interface (GUI) or a game scene. However, Samsung claims Liquavista has improved response times by 70 percent. E Ink response times are roughly 250 ms, so in theory, this means a response time of 75 ms, or a display capable of a ~13 Hz refresh rate. While this may not be fast enough for gaming, it may be fast enough for a GUI, or web browsing.

Samsung indicates that it will work with its new Dutch team to develop new technologies. It says it anticipates the company’s electrowetting display technology to mature into “transparent, transmissive and transflective displays”, with refresh rates on par with today’s low-end LCD screens (the likely target being 60 Hz).

It also mentions that it should be able to merely modify its existing LCD display production lines to successfully produce displays leveraging Liquavista’s electrowetting tech.

Update: Friday Jan 21, 2011 4:55 p.m-

Our dialogue with Samsung was forwarded to the appropriate parties. Apparently the purchase was 100 percent cash, but the purchase price was not revealed yet. Nor would Samsung share the exact response time of Liquavista’s displays in milliseconds, commenting, “We have been testing the technology and are still in a development stage, so we can’t reveal such details at this point.”

The Samsung spokesperson did offer some insight into how the new unit will be operated. It will stay in the Netherlands, but will join the global Samsung LCD R&D Center unit.

If you’re hoping to see a Samsung-powered colored e-book reader in time for the next holiday season, don’t get your hopes up. Samsung’s representative tells us, “We are still in the process of developing the EWD technology to further advanced commercialization. Timing to reach the market remains flexible.”

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EVs top gas cars in German reliability report — but one weak spot won’t quit

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Electric vehicles are quietly crushing old stereotypes about being delicate or unreliable, and the data now backs it up in a big way. According to Germany’s ADAC — Europe’s largest roadside assistance provider — EVs are actually more reliable than their internal combustion engine (ICE) counterparts. And this isn’t just a small study — it’s based on a staggering 3.6 million breakdowns in 2024 alone.
For cars registered between 2020 and 2022, EVs averaged just 4.2 breakdowns per 1,000 vehicles, while ICE cars saw more than double that, at 10.4 per 1,000. Even with more EVs hitting the road, they only accounted for 1.2% of total breakdowns — a big win for the battery-powered crowd.
Among standout performers, some cars delivered exceptionally low breakdown rates. The Audi A4 clocked in at just 0.4 breakdowns per 1,000 vehicles for 2022 models, with Tesla’s Model 3 right behind at 0.5. The Volkswagen ID.4, another popular EV, also impressed with a rate of 1.0 – as did the Mitsubishi Eclipse Cross at 1.3. On the flip side, there were some major outliers: the Hyundai Ioniq 5 showed a surprisingly high 22.4 breakdowns per 1,000 vehicles for its 2022 models, while the hybrid Toyota RAV4 posted 18.4.
Interestingly, the most common issue for both EVs and ICE vehicles was exactly the same: the humble 12-volt battery. Despite all the futuristic tech in EVs, it’s this old-school component that causes 50% of all EV breakdowns, and 45% for gas-powered cars. Meanwhile, EVs shine in categories like engine management and electrical systems — areas where traditional engines are more complex and failure-prone.
But EVs aren’t completely flawless. They had a slightly higher rate of tire-related issues — 1.3 breakdowns per 1,000 vehicles compared to 0.9 for ICE cars. That could be due to their heavier weight and high torque, which can accelerate tire wear. Still, this trend is fading in newer EVs as tire tech and vehicle calibration improve.
Now, zooming out beyond Germany: a 2024 Consumer Reports study in the U.S. painted a different picture. It found that EVs, especially newer models, had more reliability issues than gas cars, citing tech glitches and inconsistent build quality. But it’s worth noting that the American data focused more on owner-reported problems, not just roadside breakdowns.
So, while the long-term story is still developing, especially for older EVs, Germany’s data suggests that when it comes to simply keeping you on the road, EVs are pulling ahead — quietly, efficiently, and with far fewer breakdowns than you might expect.

Cars

You can now lease a Hyundai EV on Amazon—and snag that $7,500 tax credit

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Amazon has changed how we shop for just about everything—from books to furniture to groceries. Now, it’s transforming the way we lease cars. Through Amazon Autos, you can now lease a brand-new Hyundai entirely online—and even better, you’ll qualify for the full $7,500 federal tax credit if you choose an electric model like the Ioniq 5, Ioniq 6, or Kona EV.
Here’s why that matters: As of January 2025, Hyundai’s EVs no longer qualify for the tax credit if you buy them outright, due to strict federal rules about battery sourcing and final assembly. But when you lease, the vehicle is technically owned by the leasing company (Hyundai Capital), which allows it to be classified as a “commercial vehicle” under U.S. tax law—making it eligible for the credit. That savings is typically passed on to you in the form of lower lease payments.
With Amazon’s new setup, you can browse Hyundai’s EV inventory, secure financing, trade in your current vehicle, and schedule a pickup—all without leaving the Amazon ecosystem.
It’s available in 68 markets across the U.S., and pricing is fully transparent—no hidden fees or haggling. While Hyundai is so far the only automaker fully participating, more are expected to join over time.
Pioneered by the likes of Tesla, purchasing or leasing vehicles online has been a growing trend since the Covid pandemic.
A 2024 study by iVendi found that 74% of car buyers expect to use some form of online process for their next purchase. In fact, 75% said online buying met or exceeded expectations, with convenience and access to information cited as top reasons. The 2024 EY Mobility Consumer Index echoed this trend, reporting that 25% of consumers now plan to buy their next vehicle online—up from 18% in 2021. Even among those who still prefer to finalize the purchase at a dealership, 87% use online tools for research beforehand.
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Bottom line? Amazon is making it easier than ever to lease an EV and claim that tax credit—without the dealership hassle. If you're ready to plug in, it might be time to add to cart.

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China just put humanoid robots to the test in the world’s first race of its kind, where they ran alongside humans in a half-marathon. A total of 21 robots lined up for the event in the Yizhuang half-marathon, following a long spell of supervised learning on roads.