Micro-LED TV Buildup
Samsung Electronics (005930.KS) has been a proponent of the embryonic Micro-LED TV market, introducing a retail TV line (The Wall) this year to augment the commercial Micro-LED signage product it sells directly to business customers. While the commercial product is based on modules, allowing the configuration to be determined by the customer, the retail product is produced as a single unit in a number of sizes, although currently available in only the 110” and 99” sizes, which cost ~$155,000 and $147,000 respectively, with the 99” model not yet in production. Samsung has been producing less than 20 units each month during 2021, against customer orders, but is expected to produce 200 110” units in January to both supply sets for a number of trade shows early in the year, such as CES, Eurotrade, and FPD China, where the company expects to show the sets to consumers and businesses and (hopefully) take orders.
Samsung has been planning to release 101”, 99”, 89”, and 76” models this year but has delayed production until it better understands how the public will respond to these smaller but still expensive TV sets. Samsung will be switching from PCB board based LED displays to LTPS (Low temperature Poly-Silicon) TFT backplanes produced on a glass substrate for the newer models, which will allow for the LEDs to be more densely packed, a necessity for the smaller TV sizes. The modules for Samsung’s commercial Micro-LED modules ranges from 1.68mm to 0.84mm between adjacent LEDs. Given that the same number of pixels (8.29m pixels for 4K resolution) must be fit in to a 76” set that is 48% smaller than the 110” models, the spacing between each pixel must decrease as well, making it difficult to populate a PCB board. By producing the TFT structure on a glass substrate, in the same way it is done for LCD and OLED displays, and transferring the micro-LEDs to the glass substrate, such densities can be achieved, albeit still at a high cost. AU Optronics (2409.TT) is expected to be producing the micro-LED backplanes for Samsung.
Samsung has been planning to release 101”, 99”, 89”, and 76” models this year but has delayed production until it better understands how the public will respond to these smaller but still expensive TV sets. Samsung will be switching from PCB board based LED displays to LTPS (Low temperature Poly-Silicon) TFT backplanes produced on a glass substrate for the newer models, which will allow for the LEDs to be more densely packed, a necessity for the smaller TV sizes. The modules for Samsung’s commercial Micro-LED modules ranges from 1.68mm to 0.84mm between adjacent LEDs. Given that the same number of pixels (8.29m pixels for 4K resolution) must be fit in to a 76” set that is 48% smaller than the 110” models, the spacing between each pixel must decrease as well, making it difficult to populate a PCB board. By producing the TFT structure on a glass substrate, in the same way it is done for LCD and OLED displays, and transferring the micro-LEDs to the glass substrate, such densities can be achieved, albeit still at a high cost. AU Optronics (2409.TT) is expected to be producing the micro-LED backplanes for Samsung.
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