Sharp ePaper review: it’s on paper

Want to combine a digital screen with the charm of a paper poster? The Sharp ePaper screen helps you save on your energy bill.

What do you get when you cross a digital screen with a paper poster? Sharp gives you the answer to that question. The new ePaper screen, announced in fall 2024, attempts to put the charm of a paper poster in a digital jacket. The screen should offer the ease of use of a digital screen, but without the high power consumption.

A4 or A3

The ePaper screen is available in two versions: 13 inches or 25 inches. Those dimensions were not chosen by chance. The 13-inch version corresponds (roughly) to an A4 sheet, while 25 inches rivals the dimensions of A3. We got to work with the A4 version, which fits in your hands like a tablet.

The white plastic frame looks a bit cheap. An unfortunate fall, as part of our extensive testing, resulted in barely visible scratches and the screen remained intact, so the strength of the frame is fine. The VESA standard is supported for mounting the screen to a wall, and Sharp provides you with the necessary screws. We would have liked a pedestal to place the screen stably on a table: that would reduce the chance of unfortunate falls.

Digital paper

How the ePaper screen displays content is quite unique. The screen reflects ambient light. The amount of light in a room does not seem to have a direct impact on how the content appears on the screen. In both bright and low light conditions, the content is easily visible from different angles. Because the screen uses ambient light, it requires no power to stay active. Only when changing the image does power come into play.

From afar, the picture quality looks excellent. The image is free of flicker to mimic the poster effect and give your eyes rest. If you hold the screen close to your eyes, you see more noise and certain colors don’t come out quite right, such as the beautiful light blue in the ITdaily logo. This screen is meant for “static” content that only needs to change once a week or even less.

If you want the most razor-sharp, colorful and dynamic image, then you better pull out the cash for a professional digital signage solution. If the content on the screen does not need to change too often, then ePaper offers a much more energy-efficient solution.

Software & Settings

Putting an image on the screen is done via the accompanying software package ePaper Settings (see image). With this program you can also adjust general settings and security. Note that now you do need to power the screen. There are two USB-C ports built into the frame: one for a power cable and one to connect the screen to your laptop. Wireless connectivity via bluetooth is also possible.

You first upload an image to the software. The supported formats are JPG, JPEG, PNG or BMP. You can choose between landscape (horizontal) or portrait (vertical) mode. While doing so, respect the original dimensions of the image. Projecting a horizontal image in portrait mode will logically result in a “stretched out” effect. The closer the resolution of the image is to the native resolution of the screen (1,600 x 1,200 or 3,200 x 1,800), the higher the quality of the projection.

After a spectacular light show of about ten seconds, the image is transferred to the screen. Now you can disconnect the screen from power until you go to replace the contents again.

Good for your energy bill

The Sharp ePaper display has two major strengths: ease of use and energy efficiency. The screen is very easy to use. The software to switch images is self-explanatory, and once you put an image on the screen, you don’t have to look at it again. The fact that the screen stays active for weeks without needing power only benefits your energy bill.

You do have to use the screen in the right way. For the price of 999 euros (excluding VAT), you certainly don’t get the screen with the most hair-trigger image quality. You are limited to static images. If you want to show off flashy visuals during a presentation, the ePaper is not for you.

Situations in which the screen does come into its own is for displaying price lists, menus and other content that is occasionally refreshed but does not need constant change. In that context, the screen helps you save not only energy, but also paper that you would waste printing posters.

Sharp ePaper – available from 999 euros (13″) or 1,550 euros (25″) excluding VAT – 3-year warranty