InAVate magazine recently posed the question: could solid state technologies be the answer to maintenance, TCO and energy efficiency issues in the projection market?

At this year’s ISE show Sony and Mitsubishi answered a resounding yes with two major product launches and added their names to the growing ranks of companies offering an increasing range of solid state technology options.

Mitsubishi’s WXGA NW31U-EST boasts a solid state laser and LED light source to deliver 2,500 lumens and a lifespan of 20,000 hours.

The LaserVue projector series, which will be available in April 2013, uses a single segmented colour wheel and pure blue lasers. The company claims this technology creates more vibrant colours and removes rainbow effects associated with multi-segmented colour wheel technology.

Sony also brought its own take to the solid state market with its 3LCD laser, 4,000 lumens WUXA projector, which it claims is the brightest example of this technology yet.

In another departure to solid state options on the market, Sony has used laser light source technology and not LED, with the white light directed into a 3LCD engine.

Meanwhile Panasonic built on its InfoComm launch of a hybrid LED and laser professional installation model. The company showed off four different versions including multiscreen units PT-RZ470 and RW430 with edge-blending, colour matching and 3D options.

The company stressed its commitment to the technology platform with promises of more models – that would take brightness over 5,000 lumens - to come.

Out-of-home media was probably the biggest application for most display vendors at ISE and dominated the approach of NEC, Samsung and LG Display, with retail applications a clear priority on each of the manufacturers’ stands, no surprise with outdoor advertising tipped for massive growth in the next few years.

Samsung generated the most buzz with the launch of its Smart Signage Platform and pulled in Scala and Signagelive as representatives of the host of software vendors in its partnership programme.

The company is introducing embedded "System on Chip" semiconductors in its displays for signage applications to power a platform launch designed to make deployment of Samsung based networks easier and cheaper.

MMD Monitors and Displays, manufacturer of Philips branded signage solutions, was also looking to ease content management and distribution with UPP!, an Android based platform that can be used on mobile devices.

Christie also made further steps into the signage market, launching its WeatherAll Series of LCD outdoor fl at panels with a 55" robust outdoor display alongside MicroTiles and a full range of projector solutions.

It seems everyone was having a go at getting into collaboration at ISE 2013. The usual host of videoconferencing vendors gathered in Hall 12 but collaboration technologies were out in force on stands in every corner of the RAI and the most interesting developments lay with display vendors.

In particular there was a notable collection of companies, no longer content with selling product that can be integrated into wider UC&C deployments, that were looking out to collaboration and connectivity solutions.

Most interestingly these companies are really starting to think about the end user in the development and, in some cases, marketing of these products.

Barco demonstrated ClickShare on both its booth and the newly acquired projectiondesign stand.

The meeting room presentation system was sporting new features: dual display functionality, iPad compatibility and integrated audio.

Tidebreak - collaboration software that allows a room to have one or more main displays connected to up to ten devices - from US company TeamSpot made its European debut on Paradigm’s stand.

Alongside a distribution deal, Paradigm announced they would be integrating the solution into its simulation products.

Jupiter Systems showcased its Canvas multipoint collaborative visualisation application, enabling users to share content between control room display walls, PCs, and mobile devices anywhere on a network for secure collaboration tasks.

Sony showed off its Opsigate video content management system with a slant on education applications and classroom and lecture capture deployments.

Of course when it comes to displays half the battle is impact and at a show like ISE you’ve got to make an effort to stand out.

One side of NEC’s stand was dominated by a giant videowall, dubbed the Pixel Machine and made up of 23 55" large format displays run by Hiperwall.

Eyevis took 60 of its Omnishapes rearprojection display modules to create an overhanging, curved display. The display manufacturer used an IR camera system to add interactivity to some stunning content.

And you could barely make it into Hall 11 without tripping over a cluster of 3D glasses wearing spectators transfixed by LG’s enormous 3D Video Wall, consisting of forty-nine 55"displays.

MultiTouch showcased its thin bezel multitouch display (gap of 6mm from pixel to pixel) by stacking six MultiTaction 55" UTB displays running a custom-made MultiTaction Experience application.

The company demonstrated simultaneous touch, IR pen and object recognition as well as 200+fps tracking on the display wall.

Daktronics demonstrated its first 4mm pixel pitch product and Lighthouse showed off a 3.9mm pixel pitch product.

The company has joined forces with XL Video, which has provided a mechanical design to create a flexible display.

However, most impressive in this space was Lang AG’s 4k resolution LED display, which was a stunning addition to the German distributor and manufacturer’s stand. Talking of 4K, Planar and Sony also got in on the action with 84" flat panel displays.

Prysm teamed up with iRacing to lure visitors to its stand with a popular racing simulator that used its LPD display technology.

As part of its sponsorship of the ISE 2013 press office, the company also displayed tweets carrying the #ISE2013 on a 4x3 LPD videowall on its stand and a "Twitter Cube" in the pressroom.

The cube could be "spun" using a Kinect interface or controlled via a web application accessed by scanning a QR code.

Display vendors are increasingly influenced by ever more vocal end-users and are developing peripheral products and software that tie their products together in coherent solutions. Nowhere is this clearer than in the fields of collaboration and signage technologies.

But, if ISE 2013 is any indication, then projection currently holds the most interesting technology advances.

The move to solid state models is gaining momentum and it’s interesting to see how different vendors are embracing the challenge.

This report appeared in What's New Pro AV, a new publication from the creators of InAVate. Click here to read the full magazine including reports from ISE 2013 and associated conferences as well as details of the InAVation Awards 2013.