display alliance news 8.17.2010

Microsoft Unveils Research Prototype of LCD-Based Keyboard.
Microsoft Adaptive Keyboard is a research prototype developed by Microsoft Hardware to explore how combining display and input capabilities in a keyboard can allow users to be more productive. The keyboard incorporates a large, touch-sensitive display strip at the top. In addition, the display continues underneath the keys, allowing the legends to be modified in real time. This lets users do things like change the character set to a different language or display command icons. Read the full article here.

Report says Apple to launch 7-inch iPad by Christmas.
The Economic Daily reports that Taiwanese companies have won a number of component contracts for the iPad 2. Chimei Innolux will supply 7-inch LCD screens, which use the same IPS (in-plane switching) technology found in the original iPad, which improves viewing angles and color on LCD screens. Touchscreen technology for the screens will come from Cando Corporation, the report says. Read the full article here.

Nippon Electric Glass Drops on Barclays Rating Cut.
Nippon Electric Glass Co. fell to the lowest in almost nine months in Tokyo trading after Barclays Capital lowered its rating on the Japanese glassmaker amid slowing demand in the liquid-crystal display industry. Read the full article here.

AU Optronics will push ahead with 8.5 LCD technology.
AU Optronics (AUO) said it expects its new 8.5G LCD panel line to be available from next year after the government gave the go-ahead for its Central Taiwan Science Park (CTSP). The future of the company's line was put in jeopardy last month after the administrative court took out a court order to halt any work at Chihsing part of the plant citing environmental issues. At the time AUO said if the ban continued there could be a detrimental impact on its sales and the LCD market.  Read the full article here.

TFT LCD price watch

TFT LCD panel prices have fallen 3-7% for the month of July 2010 for monitor, notebook and TV panel markets. The exact reason is hard to put your finger on, yet David Hsieh from displaysearch takes a few different angles in explaining why prices will continue to drop over the next few months before any stability is possible.

Read the full blog here

Trade Show Secrets

Jeff Patch from Mass Integrated Systems, an LCD and electronic component distributor give us 7 keys to making trade shows work for you.

• Do it for the right reasons. Tradeshows like CTIA Wireless are always great place to get face-to-face with both your customers and your prospects. The same is true for media, industry analysts, investors and even suppliers. On the other hand, participating in tradeshows such as CTIA  Wireless just because you always have, your competitors are, or you’re afraid everyone will think you’re in financial trouble if you aren’t there, is not a good way to invest marketing dollars.

• Make sure shows like CTIA Wireless and other conferences are right for you. Be sure these shows attract the people who are part of the buying process and your target customer. Sure, you can check with show management to see who’s expected to attend; but also ask your customers and prospects which shows they attend. Audiences change, so even though a particular show may have delivered a good audience for you in the past doesn’t mean it still does.

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display alliance news 8.10.2010

Vending Machine Detects One’s Sex And Age To Recommend Appropriate Drinks.
All that customers need to do is to stand in front of the system, wait for it to work its magic through a camera, and then choose the drink that the system recommends by pushing the drink’s icon on a 47-inch touch panel. Read the full article here.

Minimizing the environmental effect of digital Signage.
Dave Little of Key West Technology writes a follow up article from his post last week, Is Digital Signage Green?  Dave states, digital signage offers certain advantages from the standpoint of environmental protection over traditional printed signs, but that's not to say the digital medium isn't without its own set of environmental concerns. Read the full blog post here.

Large-size LCD panel prices continue to drop in 1H August.
LCD TV panel prices for the first half of August have dropped US$7-15. LCD TV vendors are lowering prices of their sets in order to clear inventories, and are expected to restock panels later in the third quarter if the inventory clearance goes smoothly. Read the full article here, at DigiTimes Display.

Internet-Enabled TV Trumps 3-D TV in 2010.
Global shipments of IETVs—i.e., TV sets with built-in Internet capability—will amount to 27.7 million units in 2010. In contrast, 3-D set shipments will total only 4.2 million this year. While 3-D television shipments are set to soar in the coming years, iSuppli’s forecast shows the biggest near-term growth story is in IETV. Read the full article here, at isuppli.

CMI poised to supply integrated LCD, touch, cover glass panels.
CMI has transformed some of its lines to handle the production of both TFT-LCD and touch panels, and is establishing two touch panel factories. CMI's touch panel capacity will reach several million units, but it will still be only capable of fulfilling the demand from one to two clients currently. Read the full article here, at Digitimes Display.

NEC Display X-Series Bar-Type LCD

NEC Display announced its 43-inch X4321BT bar-type LCD with a 16:4 aspect ratio. The X4321BT was designed for customers that needed non-standard displays for transportation facilities, airports, quick-service restaurants and retail stores. Connectivity options include DisplayPort, HDMI, and DVI-D. The 43-inch bar-type LCD can be mounted in either landscape or portrait modes. Source: NEC Display

Green Technology: Being Green Means Being Aware and Making Smart Decisions

While the effect of digital signage on the environment may be less than traditional signs, minimizing its impact requires being aware of factors like power consumption, and the use of hazardous materials.

Digital signage offers certain advantages from the standpoint of environmental protection over traditional printed signs, but that's not to say the digital medium isn't without its own set of environmental concerns.

Among the most serious are power consumption and the associated carbon footprint of producing the electricity needed to drive the displays and computers that feed them; the use of hazardous materials in the production of digital signage displays and computers; and the impact of display and computer disposal as well as that of the packing materials needed to ship the devices to their locations safely.

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display alliance news 8.3.2010

Corning expanding Gorilla Glass manufacturing facilities in the U.S.
Gorilla Glass is currently used or designed into more than 200 mobile devices and is planned for about 100 others. Gorilla glass is an ideal cover glass for smart phones, which today represent almost 60 percent of the global mobile phone market. According James P. Clappin, President, Cornings Precision Glass business, Gorilla glass is also an appealing solution for the emerging slate computing environment. It is highly damage-resistant and scratch-resistant. The optical quality and elegance of Gorilla glass also makes it a superb cover glass for the thin, edge-to-edge design of LCD televisions. Read the full press release here.

TFT-LCD manufacturer, Orbotech, has announced that the BOE (Beijing Oriental Electronics) Technology Group has purchased the AOI (Automated Optical Inspection) systems and the Array Tester worth about $50 million dollars. Sourced from Azooptics.

USAV Group, an association of pro-av integrators, has added digital signage manufacturer CoolSign as a new Preferred Manufacturer Partner (PMP). JB&A will be responsible for the distribution of CoolSign products to USAV Group integrators. Read the full article here.

Digital Signage – Protection Options for Outdoor Locations
Richard Williams of Armagard gives us some reasons to bring your digital signage screen out doors. he says, Outdoor digital signage is a rapidly advancing sector of the industry. With so much competition in indoor locations it is no wonder more and more advertisers are taking screens outdoors in the hope of getting higher audiences and increased returns. While using digital screens in an indoor location has become somewhat of a fool-proof activity, with all-in-one digital posters and other signage options making it a simple procedure, the same can’t be said for outdoor locations. Read the full article here.

display alliance news 8.2.2010

Cash Register Prototype from Intel
Trefor from Digital Signage Point of View reports on Intels cash register prototype. He says, Intel had conceptualized this new-age cash register a year ago, but this working prototype puts their idea to glass and steel. The way this self-checkout kiosk works is that it’ll recognize your shopping habits and purchase history from your credit card and give recommendations of other products you might want to buy. You know, to get you to spend more money. The idea is to give the best features of online shopping (ease of checkout, recommendations, history) in a brick and mortar setting. And to look really cool doing it. Read the full article here.

LCD Panel Makers to Increase Capital Spending in 2010- Projected $16.9 billion in capital expenditures could cause LCD panel oversupply in Q4 2010 and in 2011. From iSuppli Market Watch

General Digital developing the industry’s first IP-addressable microcontroller, able to remotely maintain your LCD monitor. Read the full article here.

Is digital signage green?
Dave Little of Key West Technologies offers us his expertise and opinion digital signage as a green industry. Among other points he says, cutting out the need to replace printed signs eliminates the energy needed to dispose of or recycle the signs and -to the degree printed signs aren't recycled- the impact of adding tons more paper, ink, chemical coatings and paints to landfills. Read the full blog post here.

Samar technologies selling off excess inventory of their 19" touch screen digital signage monitor: $195.00

LCD TV orders decline amid inventory pile-up in North America

Digitimes has reported that LCD inventories have piled up in north America roughly 2-3 weeks higher than normal due to sluggish demand.

Q3 estimates will be down 20 to 30% unless this built up inventory is absorbed soon. System makers are attributing this forecast to decreased orders from tier one OEM vendors like Philips, LG and Samsung.

To read the full article click here.

Remotely Manage Your LCD Monitors

The Tracker 4See™ suite is designed specifically to provide our technicians with access to Calibration, Configuration, Control and Correction of an LCD monitor, all via a web driven interface. So long as it is connected to the Internet, our trained technicians will be able to monitor a flat panel display, make adjustments and diagnose any problem areas. This last point will save costly shipping and repair charges, as repairs can be made in the field. Stay tuned for further developments on the Tracker 4See™ suite. Visit our web site for more information or contact a Sales Engineer for more information.

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Samar Technologies 15" Touch Screen Sale $195.00

Samar Technologies is selling off their older version All-in-One Touch Screens to make way for the upgraded features line that will include options for: 

•   Motion Sensor
•   RJ-45 networking
•   Wi-Fi USB dongle
•   RS-232 Interface (Barcode)

For further information contact Eve Lyon 561-622-1706 elyon@samartechnologies.com.

For the detailed spec sheet on the 15" Touch Screen, click here.

The Truth Behind Digital Signage

If you're considering Digital signage and doing your research, you are, no doubt, asking yourself the question, what can digital signage do for me? Or, better yet, why should I bother spending all that money, when my posters and banners are working just fine? You are probably seeing digital signage popping up everywhere and if you've been overseas you were exposed to screens in every store window and every other conceivable place, especially in public areas.

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Is Digital Signage Green?

A head-to-head comparison of print versus digital signs tips the environmental impact scale in favor of the digital medium.

For more than two months when I've gone home from work, I'd flip on the evening news hoping to see the volcano of oil erupting from one mile beneath the Gulf of Mexico miraculously stilled, plugged somehow, staunching the incredible flow of oil and natural gas that is killing wildlife, devastating habitat and shutting down whole segments of Gulf-related businesses.

But rather than breathing a sigh of relief, night after night I'd sit mesmerized -a little queasy and apprehensive- watching the oil continuing to flow, creating what seems to be the greatest environmental calamity of my life -at least in this part of the world.

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display alliance news 7.30.2010

A video of NautiComp’s ruggedized marine display fully submerged in a fish tank. If you've never seen the capabilites of a waterproof display, have a look at this video. It's a great example of product engineering. See the video here.

4 four key elements of PDP’s remarkable growth against LCD in the TV market.
Ken Park of Display Search explains why the PDP panel market is surging as of lately. He says its caused by iInflated LED-backlit LCD panel pricing, LED supply and costs, Similar design to LED-backlit LCD TV and Feature sensitivity. Read ken’s full article here.

Tek Panel Expands it’s Product Range with 55” and 70” All-in-One Computers. Read the full press release here, on DA.

AUO buys AFPD's LTPS line, will use it to make AMOLED displays.
AU Optronics has completed its acquisition of Toshiba Mobile Display's subsidiary, AFPD. This is part of AUO's strategic move into AMOLED production. AFPD has a Gen-4.5 LTPS plant, which can be used to produce OLED backplanes. Read the full article here.

CMI LED-backlit TV panels to reach 1 million per month in 4Q10-1Q11
CMI's LED-backlit TV panel monthly shipments are expected to reach 300,000-400,000 units in the third quarter of 2010. With first-tier TV vendors aggressively promoting LED-backlit sets, global LED-backlit TV shipments are expected to reach 30-40 million units in 2010, accounting for about 20% of the total LCD TV market for the year, the sources added. Read the full article here, at Digtimes Display.

Full Compatibility Confirmed for BrightSign Solid-State Digital Players and Philips-Branded Public Signage Displays with Smart Insert. Read the full article here, on DA.

Ex-CMO executive agrees to plead guilty for role in global LCD price-fixing conspiracy, says US Justice Department.
As a result of this investigation, more than US$890 million in criminal fines have been obtained to date. Including today's filing, 18 executives and eight companies have been charged in the department's ongoing investigation into price fixing in the LCD industry. Read the full article here, at Digtimes Display.

A cool article posted by DigitalSignageBlog on a tear down of a digital signage stand. See the full article here.

Tek Panel Expands it’s Product Range with 55” and 70” All-in-One Computers

Tek Panel 550’s Display is Brilliant and Efficient
“Our current Tek Panel models are engineered to be energy-efficient within the confines of available LCD technology, but the LED backlighting used by the display of the Tek Panel 550 allows for even more efficient energy-consumption,” says John Bastian, Tek Panel CEO.  “It also delivers the best display experience available, with a 1,000,000:1 dynamic contrast ratio and 240Hz refresh rate.”

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Digital Signs Don’t Sell, Don’t Inform When They Display the Blues

By the time PC-based digital signage users realized that the February 2010 Microsoft security updates were causing their PCs to crash, it was already too late. Their PCs were plagued with the dreaded "blue screen of death" and rolling reboots, causing the digital signs they were using to deliver targeted messages to completely shut down.

This was a unique situation, but the blue screen of death errors, the most serious errors Windows can encounter, can also be caused by a temperature problem, a timing error, a resource conflict, hardware failure, a corrupt registry, a virus, a device compatibility problem or a driver error.  Unfortunately, tracking down the error and fixing it so the digital signs are operating again can be very time-consuming.

The blue screen of death shuts down a Windows-based digital display.

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Full Compatibility Confirmed for BrightSign Solid-State Digital Players and Philips-Branded Public Signage Displays with Smart Insert

Turnkey Signage Solutions Provide Easy, Plug and Play Integration; Lower TCO
and Energy Savings without Adding to Depth of Display

SARATOGA, CA (July 22, 2010) -- BrightSign, one of the fastest growing players in the digital signage industry, announced today that it has partnered with MMD, the exclusive marketer and reseller for Philips-branded LCD monitors and public signage solutions worldwide. With the partnership, system integrators and solution providers have the assurance that BrightSign’s ultra-compact, PC-less digital controllers have been tested with Philips slim public signage solutions featuring Philips Smart Insert and are fully compatible. Combined, the players and displays provide a turnkey, high-definition digital signage solution with a lower total cost of ownership, substantial energy savings and easy upgrades. BrightSign’s ability to tile and synchronize content across multiple displays with Philips’ new 46” BDL 4681XU slim monitor was also confirmed.

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NautiComp's marine display, fully submerged in a fish tank

Watch the video...

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Tek Panel 420’s Sleek Design and Computing Power Make it Ideal for Digital Signage

Made Specifically for Digital Signage
Customers have used Tek Panel all-in-one computers for digital signage applications for over five years, but the Tek Panel 420 is the first Tek Panel product designed with digital signage in mind as the primary function of the system.  Featuring a 42” TFT/LCD display in addition to a full-powered, upgradeable, integrated PC, the Tek Panel 420 has a slim bezel and options such as built-in touch screen and internal stereo speakers.  Its all-aluminum enclosure, along with various ruggedization options including optically bonded displays, make it the ideal all-in-one interactive digital signage system for public display.

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Iposter is drawing attention in Europe

Goodview joined the digital signage expo 2010 - Europe's largest digital signage event from June 15- 17 in Essen Germany. Goodview setup nice booth to show the latest products to catch many customer's eyes. As the leading digital signage product manufacturer in China, Goodview will move faster to develop Europe market to gain more market share.

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