Science Fiction Dictionary
A  B  C  D  E  F  G  H  I  J  K  L  M  N  O  P  Q  R  S  T  U  V  W  X  Y  Z

Home | Dictionary | Timeline | New

I Need An Outdoor Spherical Display

Although the outdoor, waterproof spherical display technology has been around for a little while, it's new to me and I need one. According to the reference quoted below, there are at least ten companies that make one.

So, at the recent 137th Canton Fair, we got a glimpse of some really cool Sphere LED screens! It's pretty exciting if you think about it. These technologies are not just about flashy displays; they're paving the way for the future. With the rise of high-resolution screens and immersive experiences, the possibilities for Sphere LED tech are really taking off. Whether it’s in entertainment venues or retail spaces, these screens are changing the game for how people engage with visual content. Their funky round shape offers a 360-degree view, which makes them perfect for immersive ads, art showcases, and even sports events.

Looking ahead, the demand for Sphere LED screens is definitely going to skyrocket as more businesses want to grab their audiences' attention in a more engaging way. Adding some AI and interactivity could take user experiences to a whole new level, pushing the boundaries of design and functionality even further. Plus, with sustainability becoming a huge deal globally, I think manufacturers are going to start looking into eco-friendly production methods and materials. This could really open up a brand-new chapter for Sphere LED technology. Honestly, the future looks bright, and I can't wait to see how the world of digital displays transforms in the next few years!

(Via Bescan.)

Everyone remembers the big crystal ball from the 1939 film The Wizard of Oz:

(Crystal ball from 'The Wizard of Oz')

The same kind of spherical display was described in the Culture books of Iain Banks:

You stuck your head through and there you were; one bodiless head sticking through protruding into this dimly lit spherical space with lots of other bodiless heads – only a minority of them in any sense human.

Usually a spherical display hovered in the centre of the space. Right now the display was showing some detail of the general battle space...
(Read more about the spherical display from Surface Detail)

Update 20-Jun-2026: See also the visiglobe from Agent of Vega, by James Schmitz. Published by Astounding Science-Fiction in 1949. End update.

Scroll down for more stories in the same category. (Story submitted 5/3/2026)

| Email | RSS | Blog It | Stumble | del.icio.us | Digg | Reddit |

Would you like to contribute a story tip? It's easy:
Get the URL of the story, and the related sf author, and add it here.

Comment/Join discussion ( 0 )

Related News Stories - (" Display ")

Did Frank Herbert Predict Bistable Displays Like E-Ink?
'A broken circle with arrows pointing to a right-hand flow appeared in the chalf.' - Frank Herbert, 1964.

I Need An Outdoor Spherical Display
'Usually a spherical display hovered in the centre...' - Iain M. Banks, 2010.

Outdoor Video Screens Can Be Arbitrarily Large
The Shape of Things To Come, HG Wells, 1936.

iPhone Air Fulfils Jobs' Promise From 2007 - A Giant Screen!
'... oblongs were all over the floor and surfaces.' - Kazuo Ishiguro, 2021.

	Web TechNovelgy.com

Technovelgy (that's tech-novel-gee!) is devoted to the creative science inventions and ideas of sf authors. Look for the Invention Category that interests you, the Glossary, the Invention Timeline, or see what's New.

Science Fiction Timeline
1600-1899
1900-1939
1940's   1950's
1960's   1970's
1980's   1990's
2000's   2010's

Current News

Health Kiosk Has No Human Doctor
'The electronic body analyzer had been developed...'

Meta's Horizon Studio's Unique Avatars From Text Prompts
'Looks like she has bought the Avatar Construction Set and put together her own...'

VaMEx Biomimetic Mars Robot Inspired By Skink
'Across the ground something small and metallic came, flashing in the dull sunlight of midday.'

NEO Brain Computer Interface (BCI)
'The remains of the lace took on the rough shape of a brain...'

Did Frank Herbert Predict Bistable Displays Like E-Ink?
'A broken circle with arrows pointing to a right-hand flow appeared in the chalf.'

Monolith One Giant Industrial Metal 3D-printer
'The object seemed melted together like wax — nothing was distinguishable.'

'Mooncrete' Lunar Regolith Concrete (LRC)
'And here they began to build...'

China's 'Magpie Drone' Ornithopter
'Midges have many capabilities. To the untrained eye, they look like sparrows.'

MAI-Voice-2 Microsoft Text-To-Speech
'I made disks of my own voice to the number of five hundred very carefully chosen words.'

Tumblin' Tumbleweed Rovers To Eplore Mars
'His sensors out and working, and the whirring of the tape that sucked up sight and sound and shape and smell and form...'

Tentacled Robot Captures Space Debris
Preventing annoying space debris build-up.

Prufrock-MB2 Ready In Nashville
'It sounds to me as though you had invented a kind of metal earthworm.'

DIY Robotic Content Farming
'The chief wheeled to the master machine and pressed a button.'

Reflect Orbital Sunlight On Demand
'I don't have to tell you about the seven two-mile-diameter orbital mirrors that circulate around the satellite, making it habitable.'

The Amazing Lightfoot Electric Scooter With Solar Assist
'The steel tortoise gave MacKinnon a feeling of Crusoe- like independence.'

Fully Electric, Fully Automated Vegetable‑growing Agribots
'...then back to their work, though little enough it was on these automatic cultivators.'

More SF in the News Stories

More Beyond Technovelgy science news stories