Assertive display is not just a software trick - it’s an actual semiconductor IP core that is made to be easily adaptable and ready for integration in various displays. The technology works independently of the underlying processor architecture and does its magic by taking data from a single photosensor on the device.

The actual pixel correction uses iridix, a technology that has been developed for years on end to mimick the human’s eye capability to adjust to different lighting conditions. As we’ve already said, this is the local tone mapping engine that drives dynamic real-time changes in every single pixel and revealing lost detail in shadows and highlights while still keeping the realistic colors and overall appearance of a picture. Most importantly, it leaves the midtones in an image untouched.

Iridix uses that independent hardware core so it does not additionally stress your CPU or system memory, and it works with all display types.

"The thing to remember is we're not changing the brightness or the power of this display at all," stresses Apical CEO Michael Tusch, "we're just tuning the pixels to adjust the contrast ratio."

Lumia 1520 is the first smartphone with assertive display tech

However the stark difference in readability comes from a technology called assertive display and developed by Apica. Assertive display outdoes all existing display management functions like Samsung’s Adapt display for instance. The core benefit from using it is dramatically improved outdoor viewing experience but not at the expense of battery efficiency.

You most likely already have a light sensor in your smartphone that can adjust the display brightness to lighting conditions, but what this assertive display technology does is actually tweak every pixel, and not just the screen as a whole. It all happens in real time and the results are telling.

The technology actually adjusts the color and brightness of every pixel depending on the lighting conditions and the changes happen extremely quickly. Here is Apica’s own explanation of how its technology allows users to watch a movie on a tablet even under the direct sun:

Assertive display difference

“Assertive Display dynamically adjusts content to ambient lighting conditions using state-of-the-art pixel processing algorithms. This means that the effective screen contrast can remain around 1000:1, similar to an HDTV, even when the real screen contrast ratio is around 10:1, as it is for LCD and OLED displays in bright sunshine.”