Transflective liquid-crystal display

A transflective liquid-crystal display is a liquid-crystal display (LCD) that reflects and transmits light (transflective is a portmanteau of transmissive and reflective). Under bright illumination (e.g. when exposed to daylight) the display acts mainly as a reflective display with the contrast being constant with illuminance. Only in dim and dark ambient situations is an auxiliary transmissive backlight needed. An early application were digital LCD wristwatches. In dim ambient light or at night a pushbutton-activated backlight allowed reading of the display in its transmissive mode. Today, a useful application is the digital LC time display in alarm clocks for bedrooms. The backlighting is dim, so that the display is comfortably readable at night.