Display Alliance News 12.21.2010
Jin Kim
Screen Media Daily "Planar Announces Availability of EP-Series Digital Signage Displays"
Planar Systems has announced the availability of their new EP-Series line in 46-inch and 55-inch sizes. Each comes standard with a broad range of connectivity options required for commercial applications, such as airports and control rooms.
Planar's EP-Series displays are offered with standard black and glossy white frames and with EP Select™ customization. The industrial metal bezel can be transformed with custom colors or logos that meet the distinct requirements for each installation.
The EP-Series from Planar is less than 2 inches deep and makes use of LED backlights, which reduces weight and power consumption.
DigiTimes "Asustek Internally Aiming to Ship 25 Million Notebooks in 2011, Says Paper"
Taiwan-based notebook brand vendor Asustek Computer, at its global sales meeting, has set its internal notebook shipment goal for 2011 at 25 million units, up 48% from 16.9 million units in 2010 [...]
iSuppli "Tablets Become Epicenter for Convergence"
After decades of discussion, the convergence of consumer, computer and communications is finally becoming a reality with the arrival of Apple Inc.’s iPad and competing tablets, a development that will have massive implications for the technology world, spurring competition not only among varying types of products but also among entire industries [...]
Fifty six iPads were arranged in a 8x6 matrix to form a huge iPhone at London's St. Pancras International Train Station.
Pixel Qi via DisplayBlog: Pixel Qi & Chunghwa Picture Tubes (CPT) Partnership
This alliance started early last sum mer when CPT showed a trans flec tive screen of its own design at a Taiwanese trade show. Discussions between the two compa nies at that show made it appar ent that Pixel Qi and CPT should work together to bring stronger prod uct to mar ket faster. A close alliance was formed and the teams have been work ing together qui etly all fall. They have cre ated sam ples of a 7” 1024×600 screens sched uled for mass pro duc tion in early Q2 2011, which will be first pub li cally shown at the CES 2011 exhi bi tion in Las Vegas in early January 2011.
Pixel Qi has an amazing display technology that enables the backlight unit (BLU) to be completely turned off and transform the once transmissive LCD into a low-power reflective display. The ideal platform for Pixel Qi's display technology are ultra-portable notebook PCs and tablets.
DigiTimes "AUO Affiliate Toppan CFI to Set Up Production Plant in Kunshan, China"
With AU Optronics (AUO) getting ready to set up a 7.5G TFT-LCD panel production plant in Kunshan, China, its subsidiaries are also gearing up to follow, and the panel maker's color filter affiliate Toppan CFI will invest US$167 million to set up a production plant nearby.
It is common industry practice to co-locate critical component suppliers nearby large LCD fabrication plants. Major components that improve efficiencies are glass substrates and color filters. China will soon become a region that will challenge South Korea and Taiwan for LCD production leadership due to the huge domestic market potential.
DisplaySearch "LCD TV Panel Manufacturers Developing Unique Specifications for Emerging Markets"
According to the DisplaySearch Quarterly Large-Area TFT LCD Product Roadmap Report, panel makers are designing for emerging markets like India, Brazil, China, and Russia with lower specifications than for developed markets. Brightness can be in the range of 350-400 nits, versus the 450-500 nits standard, and color saturation can be 65-68% of NTSC versus 72-75%.
LCD TV shipments will reach 200 million units this year and as penetration increases growth will depend more on emerging markets. Even in advanced economies lower-priced LCD TVs are needed to increase broader acceptance.
ScreenMedia Daily "Kno Ships Innovative Educational Tablet for Students"
Kno, Inc., the new educational tablet that revolutionizes the way students learn, today announced it has begun shipping its highly anticipated product to pre-order customers. The first Kno tablets will begin arriving on doorsteps this week.
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Kno, short for knowledge, is a unique 14.1 touch-screen tablet that blends textbooks, course materials, note-taking, web access, educational applications, digital media, sharing and more into a more powerful and engaging educational experience.
Kno comes in two packages: a $599 single display model and a $899 dual-display model. I hope gone are the days where students have to lug around heavy textbooks all over campuses. With innovative products like the Kno dozens of electronic textbooks can be purchased at no additional weight.
These e-textbooks are interactive and with a touch-based display a student can make notations using just a stylus and share them. The dual-display version is especially noteworthy: one screen can display an e-textbook while the other can be used as a multimedia notepad. This hopefully will enhance the educational experience.
DigiTimes "Taiwan Market: Proportion of Handset Sales for Smartphones to Rise to 30% in 2010, 40% in 2011"
Smartphones as a percentage of all handsets sold in the Taiwan market, due to promotion by mobile telecom carriers, will increase to an estimated 30% in 2010 and further to 40% in 2011, according to retail channels.
At the same time demand for 3.x-inch TFT LCDs as well as OLED displays will increase.
iSuppli "LED Backlights Used in 20 Percent of LCD TVs Sold in US During Q3"
One out of every five liquid-crystal display televisions (LCD TV) sold in the United States during the third quarter used light-emitting diode (LED) backlighting, a dramatic increase from the same period in 2009, as availability of sets equipped with the technology soared, according to the market research firm iSuppli, now part of IHS Inc.
LCD TVs with LED backlights commonly referred to as "LED TVs" will continue to gain in popularity. LED backlights do not use mercury, which is a known carcinogen, compared to CCFL backlights. LEDs are more durable, consume less power and last longer. LED backlight technology also enables TV designs to be thinner.
Digital Signage Today "Digital Signage Goes to the Bathroom"
In the Mirrus Digital Advertising Mirror and the Mirror Image Digital Network, lavatory mirrors display digital advertising until the system's sensors detect someone approaching the mirror — which causes the ad to compact into a corner of the mirror. Lavatory visitors are then free to check themselves out while washing their hands or continue viewing the ad up in the corner of the mirror.
Fascinating application of mirrored-LCDs.
Screen Media Daily "Panasonic and Haivision Partner to Deliver Integrated Digital Signage Solution"
The solution combines Haivision's CoolSign digital signage software platform, pre-configured on a media players with Panasonic's professional grade LCD displays. This bundled digital signage package offers businesses simplified delivery with competitive pricing, a pre-configured CoolSign player license certificate plus a two-year parts and service warranty.
DigiTimes "LG Display Aims to Become Leading Panel Supplier in China, Says CEO"
LG Display CEO Young Soo Kwon, commenting on competitor AU Optronics (AUO) receiving approval to set up a 7.5G TFT-LCD panel production plant in China, has claimed that 8.5G is more competitive than 7.5G and his company will become the largest panel supplier in China.
The race is on to become the leading supplier of LCDs to the Chinese domestic market. In related news "CMI Reiterates Intention to Build LCD Plant in China"
With AU Optronics (AUO) receiving permission from the Taiwan government to set up a 7.5G TFT-LCD panel production plant in China, Chimei Innolux (CMI) has reiterated that it will go to China but is still evaluating when is the right time to do so.
The right time would be as soon as possible. In the world of LCD manufacturing the faster equipment is completely depreciated the sooner one gets to more competitive cost of manufacturing.
Digital Signage Today "I-Display Rolling Out Battery-Operated Digital Shelf Display"
Designed to operate cable free and with the use of standard batteries, the iShelf fits multiple shelving configurations in retail environments and supermarkets and grocery stores. Using its secure and adjustable mounting system the height and angle can be changed to ensure that customers never miss these digital signage sales personnel [...]
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