Client
Transcendent Designs LLC was one of the major innovator companies. The firm specialized in innovation, mobile technology, electrical engineering and renewable energy
Industry
Entertainment
Services
R&D, Product Development, Firmware Development
Tech
Android, iOS

Challenge

Today we consume so much content through our smartphones that it often feels like there is a need for an extra device to simplify its consumption. Watching your favorite mini-series while simultaneously chatting with friends via messengers doesn’t seem to be a smooth user experience. Such experience was even worse back in 2017 when smartphone displays rarely exceeded 5 inches. Our client Brent Morgan came to us, having 49 innovative patents for research and engineering under his belt. His ambition was to design a light-weight tablet with a high-resolution display that would magnify apps from personal smartphones, mirror the content without wires, any connection hassles, and any complicated setups required from users. As a user you would only have to download an app to your smartphone, turn on a Superscreen tablet, and the rest would be your usual experience but amplified: on a bigger crispier screen. At that time, renowned tech giants yet failed to provide similar technologies within their ecosystems. Every stage of the Superscreen project demanded unprecedented, unparalleled solutions to turn the idea into a product.

We took on the following challenges:
Research all available Wi-Fi and Bluetooth protocols, capable of streaming video & audio
Design a custom protocol compliant with wireless communication standards
Provide a cutting-edge software solution for screen mirroring / media streaming / screencasting with minimal time lag
Design custom haptic touch technology
Manage all possible dependencies, covering 99% of available smartphone devices (Android, iOS)

Solution

A custom Android-based OS that provides Superscreen with regular tablet functionality alongside screen mirroring, screencasting, and media streaming from the synced user’s smartphone
A custom launcher: when Superscreen is being synced to the user's smartphone, the firmware analyzes the applications installed on the device and depending on their characteristics either mirrors or re-downloads them on the tablet for better user experiences, as is the case with Google apps
Custom Streaming Connection (Proprietary protocol). The seamless connection between two devices is evenly split between WiFi and Bluetooth channels: screen mirroring and screencasting are carried out through WiFi, while haptic movements and commands are transmitted via Bluetooth. That patent wireless technology drastically offsets the time lags between the devices
A custom image capturing process to transmit content from the user’s smartphone to a tablet via WiFi with a quality of at least 30 FPS, 1080 p, HD resolution. Superscreen also displays content with 16:9 aspect ratio, without any black bars
Custom haptic touch technology. A custom driver was created to provide smooth haptic functionality without lags. Superscreen captures all the haptic movements and selections that the user makes on the tablet and transmits them to the smartphone. Haptic touch is super responsive and operates as a cursor on a smartphone with no visible delay during sync
Automatic hotspot activation. If a WiFi network is available, Superscreen asks the user to enter a password, and then syncs everything automatically. If only mobile data is available, Superscreen proceeds to automatically launch a hotspot with no additional setups from the user required
Dual-mode allows the user to control multiple apps on their smartphone and Superscreen at the same time. The functionality allows multitasking and significantly improves battery consumption. For instance, when a Youtube video starts playing on the Superscreen tablet, the iPhone is no longer playing it. The smartphone only sends the feed to the Superscreen tablet without draining battery power to reproduce the video on its own screen
Battery / Sleep mode. If the user watches a video on Superscreen, the user's smartphone automatically goes to sleep (Android), or the screen automatically dims (Apple)
The Multiple Devices option allows users to connect multiple Superscreens to a single smartphone. A handy tool for sharing presentations with multiple members. This also allows parents to transmit content from a single smartphone to multiple screens for their children
The Superscreen Tablet
Superscreen Tablet

Impact

The Superscreen Kickstarter campaign collected over $2.5 million due to groundbreaking development solutions, providing users with full control of their smartphones on a larger, better display.
Of a beta testing group of 179 backers, 78% valued the product at a price above the $99 campaign price, and 24% valued the product at over $300 (three times the campaign price).
Superscreen offered a unique blend of cutting-edge technologies and benefits of a tablet with the convenience of a private smartphone long before the rise of such technologies as AirPlay, Sidecar, Google Chromecast, Miracast, Airtame.
Superscreen users could enjoy more convenient functionality of a bigger screen without having to re-download all of their apps, pictures, notes and bookmarks.

Latest projects