Mini LED backlight displays provide an opportunity for panel makers such as AU Optronics Corp (AUO, 友達光電) to seize a bigger share of the advanced displays market, given the emerging technology’s significant advantages in brightness, reliability and performance over OLED technology, TrendForce Corp (集邦科技) said in a report on Monday.
Mini LED backlight displays rival OLED panels in their ability to contrast colors, the Taipei-based researcher said.
Aside from those merits, mini LED backlight displays are also more competitive in terms of manufacturing cost and power consumption, so they should deliver a higher cost-to-performance ratio than rival technologies, TrendForce said.
Mini LED backlights are forecast to be used in 20 percent of computer monitors, 15 percent of TV panels and 10 percent of tablet and laptop panels by 2024, the researcher said.
Taiwanese panel makers AUO and Innolux Corp (群創光電) have been conservative on the production of large-sized OLEDs for TVs and PCs, due to the manufacturing costs.
AUO only ships OLED panels for wearable devices from its 3.5G plant.
The two companies have been investing in mini LED technology, which is considered a good bet to compete with the OLED technology lauded by their South Korean rivals.
Innolux believes its 120-inch mini LED TV panels could outsell OLED TV panels due to the size and cost advantages, helping it win the race for dominance of the sector, Innolux president James Yang (楊柱祥) told reporters last month.
To make quick inroads, AUO and Innolux have been working with their LED subsidiaries to develop mini LED backlight modules, TrendForce said.
AUO has been working with Lextar Electronics Corp (隆達電子), while Innolux has teamed up with Advanced Optoelectronic Technology Inc (榮創科技) and Epileds Technologies Inc (光鋐科技) to develop panels for premium TVs, gaming monitors and vehicle displays, the researcher said.
Chinese firms China Star Optoelectronics Technology Co (華星光電) and BOE Group Co (京東方) have also invested in mini LED backlight displays by leveraging their edge in LCD manufacturing, TrendForce said.
Taiwanese LED chip manufacturer Epistar Corp (晶電) is working with its subsidiary Yenrich Technology Corp (元豐新科技) to produce mini LED light source modules to extend its reach into the backlight module market, the researcher said.
Among the rows of vibrators, rubber torsos and leather harnesses at a Chinese sex toys exhibition in Shanghai this weekend, the beginnings of an artificial intelligence (AI)-driven shift in the industry quietly pulsed. China manufactures about 70 percent of the world’s sex toys, most of it the “hardware” on display at the fair — whether that be technicolor tentacled dildos or hyper-realistic personalized silicone dolls. Yet smart toys have been rising in popularity for some time. Many major European and US brands already offer tech-enhanced products that can enable long-distance love, monitor well-being and even bring people one step closer to
Malaysia’s leader yesterday announced plans to build a massive semiconductor design park, aiming to boost the Southeast Asian nation’s role in the global chip industry. A prominent player in the semiconductor industry for decades, Malaysia accounts for an estimated 13 percent of global back-end manufacturing, according to German tech giant Bosch. Now it wants to go beyond production and emerge as a chip design powerhouse too, Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim said. “I am pleased to announce the largest IC (integrated circuit) Design Park in Southeast Asia, that will house world-class anchor tenants and collaborate with global companies such as Arm [Holdings PLC],”
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