E Ink Holdings says that Walmart has decdied to deploy electronic shelf labels at 500 stores in the US. The first stage will call for the installation of 60 million panels, in the next 12-18 months, and will be handled by E Ink's partner, SES-imagotag.

E Ink sees growing demand for its displays, and is planning a multi-year capacity expansion plan. The company expects its revenues next year to increase sharply following Walmart's orders, and it also expects a modest increase in 2023. 

Papercast announced that Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority (Metro) has selected its solar-powered digital bus stop displays to improve the customer experience for Metro’s transit riders in downtown Los Angeles.

LA Metro tested mutiple e-paper providers in LA locations for over 16 months, and has selected Papercast 13” and 23” solar powered e-paper displays to be installed onto existing LA Metro transit poles along its NextGen 204 line along Vermont Avenue. The intent of this installation is to assess how to implement a countywide model that improves the customer experience and builds ridership for Metro’s transit riders across the County.

E Ink launched a new generation of its full color Spectra ePaper display technology, called the E Ink Spectra 6. Targeting in-store advertising, indoor signage and paper sign replacements in general, the Specra 6 offers "a level of color saturation and vividness never before seen in a reflective display".

E Ink Spectra 6 offers a resolution (density) of 200 PPI, a contrast ratio of 30:1 and an operating range of 0-50 degrees Celsius. E Ink Spectra 6 will be offered in a variety of display sizes, and can create a partial image flashing effect, called E Ink Sparkle, which enhances the effect of advertising messages through motion.

A year ago E Ink Holdings announced its Kaleido 3 color ePaper technology, which improved the color saturation by 30% compared the previous-generation Kaleido Plus (which was launched in March 2021). The Kaleido 3 display is based on E Ink's Print Color ePaper technology, where a color filter array (CFA) is used in conjunction with E Ink’s Carta black and white ink film.

Now EIH announced a new version of this display, called Kaleido 3 Outdoor, which is designed specifically for Digital Out-of-Home (DOOH) advertising signage and is suitable for outdoor use in a wide temperature range (-16 to 65 degrees). The wide temperature range allows it to operate in extremely cold or hot areas without the need for expensive, high-energy-consuming heating or cooling devices, reducing additional power consumption.

E Ink Holdings announced a partnership with Sharp to bring ePaper posters to the market. Sharp and EIH has been collaborating for three years, and this is the first commercial step in that collaboration.

Sharp will release 42" monochrome E Ink displays (or e-poster as they call it) in the Japanese market in April 2023.

The ePaper industry and market, led by E Ink, is growing, mostly fueld by demand for electronic shelf labels, and next-gen tablets and eReaders. Here are some recent and popular news that you may find of interest:

• McLaren tests E Ink ads in its racing cars
• E Ink Gallery 3 ACeP color ePaper displays move into mass production
• Huawei sold 110,000 E Ink tablet devices in 2 months, sues Amazon over E Ink patents
• Harvard researchers find that E Ink displays are healthier than LCD or OLED displays
• E Ink launches the Prism 3 dynamic segmented display technology
• Amazon launches a 10.2-inch eNote/eReader device
• E Ink to spend around $110 million to expand its production facilities
• reMarkable sold over a million E Ink tablets, raises funds
• E Ink announces the improved Gallery 3 ACeP color ePaper display
• Is Apple testing color E Ink displays for future foldable phones and tablets?
• E Ink launches Gallery Plus ACeP displays with improved colors and contrast
• E Ink shows foldable and rollable ePaper displays
• Is Amazon developing a foldable E Ink Kindle device?

A recent study by Harvard researchers find that E Ink displays with front lighting are up to three times less stressful for retinal cells than LCD displays. E Ink displays without a front light do not emit any blue light and so are not stressing retinal cells at all.

Blue light, according to researchers, is potentially harmful when emitted into the eyes for hours at a time. Blue light poses a hazard to retinal cells in the eye, and exposure to blue light near bedtime reduces levels of the sleep-inducing hormone melatonin, disrupting the circadian rhythm and restorative sleep.

The effects of blue light are known for a long time, and this new research finding is not surprising.