Sharp develops mobile phone scanner
Just when you thought every conceivable type of gadget had been squeezed into the confines of the ever-shrinking mobile phone, Sharp have thought of a new one - a scanner! To be more precise, they've developed a super-sharp 2.6" VGA display that also comes equipped with an image-sensor.
The screen's image sensor is designed to detect where a stylus or finger is to enable touchscreen input. However, it's so sensitive, it can also be used for proper biometrics by scanning a user's fingerprint when a finger placed on the screen.
As you can see from the pic (above), it doesn't take a great leap of imagination to see how such a display can be used to scan documents as well. Granted you won't be scanning the works of Shakespeare on a 2.6" photocopier, but imagine the advantages of being able to scan in all your receipts for your expense account just by plopping them on your mobile phone.
No indication of when this display will be used in a real phone, but given the pace of mobile phone technology, we can probably expect it round about next week!
[Source: Modaco]
