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DooH: Sharp Presents First Outdoor E-Poster

Sharp is unveiling its first AO-sized outdoor e-poster at the Ceatec trade fair in Tokyo. This all-in-one solution, featuring four Sharp EPDs, is IP65-protected and operates autonomously with a 5G modem, LED lighting, and solar cells. Covering just under one square meter, the poster could be installed without approval in Germany.

In the run-up to the Japanese IT trade fair Ceatec, which started this Tuesday in Tokyo, Sharp was awarded the Ceatec Award for its E Ink-based e-poster. The outdoor-display in DIN A0 format can be operated completely independently of any wired infrastructure.

The Sharp E-Poster integrates four outdoor-capable e-paper displays into an IP65-protected housing. Equipped with a solar panel and a battery that provide the energy for content updates and evening illumination, it operates autonomously. This is a major benefit for out-of-home providers and the public sector, as it eliminates the high costs of connection work, which are often disproportionate to the investment and potential DooH revenue.

The e-poster – which is initially developed for the Japanese market – uses LTE-M technology and thus enables communication with low power consumption. The e-paper should also function reliably in the event of a disaster, as the modem uses mobile radio frequencies that are prioritized for operation in emergency situations.

Turning four into one

Sharp uses four E Ink-based EPDs for the E-Poster, which, thanks to Eizo technology, feature a very thin bezel. E Ink is already planning for future EPD generations with virtually frameless e-paper displays. For this purpose, new production facilities are being built in China, which are due to start operations in spring 2025.

From a German perspective, DIN A0 posters have the invaluable advantage that the display area of ​​84.1 by 118.9 centimeters corresponds to exactly 0.999949 square meters. DooH screens under 1 square meter, which corresponds to 16 sheets of DIN A4 format, are generally not subject to approval in Germany.

While the established DooH industry is still struggling with a display technology that doesn’t support video and is lacking the full color range – EPDs are starting to complement LCD and LED in public spaces. The extremely low power consumption speaks for itself, but larger formats are still lacking. And the price point is currently still too high.