Low-Tech Remedy for a Small Screen: A Magnifying Glass?

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Had to LOL when I saw this Mini Cinema for iPhone. We’ve seen non-powered sound amplifiers for iDevices before, that essentially use seashell properties to magnify the acoustics. But here someone’s come up with a rectangular magnifying glass that makes your iPhone look (in theory, anyway) like an iPad.

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The manufacturer claims the $68 device “is of exquisite craftwork” and enhances the experience of both watching movies and playing games, though it’s not clear how you’d play a touchscreen game with the screen magnifier in place. You can rotate the device to watch movies in landscape view, which we’d imagine would be the preferred method, but of course you’d have to keep your head in a fixed position to enjoy the magnification.

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The potential usability flaws aside, this thing did get me wondering: Do you reckon it’s possible to work out the viewing angle issues, and create large-screen TVs with smaller sources magnified by a big-ass lens? Or would the manufacturing hassles preclude any cost savings?

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