MiniLED flip TV panel market, Zhi’an Electronics’ new solution accelerates product penetration

As Mini LED has matured in recent years and gradually gained market share in high-end TVs and monitors, the industry is optimistic about the future of this industry. TrendForce, a research firm, predicts that Mini LED TVs will perform well and shipments will surge by 55% this year. Another research firm believes that Mini LED shipments in TV applications will surpass OLED TV display panel shipments for the first time.

Lin Junlong, R&D manager of the Mini Business Center of Zhian Electronics, an LED driver IC design service provider, pointed out that the advantages of Mini LED are high brightness and high contrast, which is suitable for high-end TVs and monitors. Automotive panels involve outdoor fields, durability and reliability. Under the same conditions, Mini LED display performance is better than OLED, which has advantages in small and medium-sized panels.

In the past, Zhi'an Electronics launched PM-Gen1 and PM-Gen 2 solutions for the driver IC of Mini LED backlight modules. In response to customer needs, it gradually improved the technology and launched a new generation of AM-Gen3 solutions to help brand manufacturers reduce costs and expand Mini LED panel market share.
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Zhian Electronics AM-Gen3 architecture has been introduced into Hisense, Xiaomi and other brands

Lin Junlong explained that in the past, one IC controlled a dimming area of ​​100 or 200 areas, which made the IC size larger. When the panel size becomes larger and the dimming area increases to 1,000 or 2,000 areas, more ICs will be needed, resulting in high costs and more complex wiring. In this regard, Zhi'an Electronics' solution has been changed from passive matrix (PM) driver to active (AM) driver. Compared with the previous PM technology that placed the IC on the control board, AM-Gen3 places all the IC control on the light board, significantly reducing the volume of the control board, making the light board and wiring design simpler, saving power consumption and costs, and meeting customers' ESG requirements.

However, it is very difficult to maintain the size and thickness of the IC while also taking into account the optical properties of the LED. Lin Junlong said frankly, "At the beginning, no manufacturer made this architecture. We could only cooperate step by step with the panel manufacturers to discuss how to develop driver ICs with this architecture." In addition, the design also encountered IC communication problems, so Zhi'an developed a special transmission interface that can maintain the stability and speed of the LED backlight module even with a huge amount of data. It can meet the 144Hz, 240Hz, or even 480Hz requirements required by general e-sports screens. In the future, even the high transmission requirements of 960Hz refresh rate and zero-delay picture can be met, further improving the user experience.

"AM-Gen3 significantly reduces power and energy consumption compared to previous generations of solutions. It also uses Hybrid Dimming technology to maximize and refine the light, brightness, and contrast presentation. Consumers are more aware of the "black is blacker, white is whiter" picture. On the basis of AM-Gen3, it achieves zero delay in the picture and dynamic afterimage elimination technology." Lin Junlong pointed out that in addition to being used for PCB substrates, AM-Gen3 can also be used for smaller glass substrates. Brand manufacturers can plan products based on architecture and cost. Currently, various brand manufacturers are gearing up to adopt this solution.
▲ Lin Junlong, R&D Manager of Zhi’an Electronics Mini Business Center, said that AM-Gen3 has significantly reduced power and energy consumption compared with previous generations of solutions. Currently, TV brand manufacturers including Hisense, Xiaomi and others have adopted this solution.

Optimistic that Mini LED will continue to expand its market share in TV and monitor markets

When talking about the market outlook of Mini LED, Lin Junlong said, "No one could have imagined the future of Mini LED before the Mini LED architecture was developed." At first, the penetration rate of this display technology was only 4%, but as Zhi'an Electronics continued to develop technology and design the preliminary architecture in 2018, it was not until the launch of the AM Gen 3 architecture in 2020 that Mini LED applications truly turned around, were scaled up and introduced into practical applications. The current penetration rate of Mini LED in global TV and display panels has increased from 7% last year to 10%. It is still on an upward trend. As more manufacturers invest in reducing costs, it will continue to ferment and accelerate the expansion of market share in the future.

Lin Junlong is optimistic about the industry, saying that the current introduction of Mini LED into the Chinese mainland market is fast and shipments are rising, while Taiwan is relatively slow. However, he believes that prices will continue to decline in two or three years, towards a price acceptable to consumers. In addition, SONY's release of the latest BRAVIA series of Mini LED TVs is undoubtedly a reassurance for the Mini LED industry. Major display brands have also seen the potential of Mini LED as a display technology. Although small and medium-sized panels may face competition from OLED, they still have their advantages and customer groups in large sizes and specific fields. Especially in the recent e-sports field, with the blessing of high-speed computing, high-end Mini LED The specification requirements of MNT/TV are growing day by day, mainly reflected in the requirements of bright and dark contrast of display, zero delay of picture, overall power consumption performance (ESG), and picture quality. These factors make Mini LED backlight the best choice for current display technology.

As Mini LED terminal products gradually become more affordable, TrendForce predicts that Mini LED backlight TV shipments will continue to grow and are expected to reach 6.21 million units in 2024, an annual increase of 53.5%. By 2027, shipments are estimated to be 24.4 million units, accounting for approximately 12.1% of the overall TV market; Mini LED backlight monitors (Monitor) to It is expected to enter an explosive period from 2026 to 2027, and the market penetration rate will increase significantly by 2027.

For the next generation of display technology, Micro LED, Zhi'an Electronics is already negotiating with manufacturers

Mini LED's high brightness, high contrast, and high reliability are all advantages over OLED. In the future, Zhi'an Electronics will continue to promote technological innovation. Since high partition control has become more difficult and the transmission time is longer, it will continue to optimize in terms of partition control, color accuracy, and dynamic range in the future.

In addition to TVs and monitors, Lin Junlong is also optimistic about the future application of Mini LED in the fields of e-sports screens, graphics screens, automotive displays, medical displays and industrial control. "Whether it is X-ray or CT monitors, color display is more important for doctors' interpretation; automotive and industrial control displays require high brightness and high reliability because they involve outdoor environments. In addition, OLED is prone to color burn-in problems and has a short lifespan, so it will still be the main focus of Mini LED in the future."

As for the next generation of display technology, Lin Junlong expects that Mini LED is in the fermentation stage, and Micro LED will need to be brewed for a longer time before it has the opportunity to become popular among consumers. IC is also an important part of technology development. At present, Zhi'an Electronics is also actively exploring Micro LED business opportunities and has negotiated with some manufacturers. In the future, it will also plan, develop and design the next generation technology.
▲ Zhian Electronics is actively exploring Micro LED business opportunities, and will also plan, develop and design the next generation of technology in the future.