1. LG OLED does not meet the iPhone production requirements, Samsung or fully take over the iPhone OLED screen supply;
Abstract: According to the news of the Korean media The Bell, Apple's 6.5-inch iPhone X plus will be equipped with Samsung's OLED screen this year. It is reported that LG will also provide OLED panels for Apple, but LG's display production is backward. Due to the timetable, the production requirements of the 6.5-inch iPhone could not be reached, and up to now, LG's display has not passed the mass production test.
Set micro-network news (text / Jimmy), Apple will release three new iPhones this year, namely 5.8-inch iPhone X second generation, LCD version 6.1-inch iPhone, 6.5-inch iPhone X plus. This is a cliché, away from Apple There are less than 2 months of the press conference in the fall. The news about the new iPhone is also a constant stream.
According to South Korean media The Bell, Apple's 6.5-inch iPhone X plus will be equipped with Samsung's OLED screen this year. It is reported that LG will also provide OLED panels for Apple, but LG's display production lags behind time. Table, failed to meet the production requirements of the 6.5-inch iPhone, and up to now, LG's display has not passed the mass production test.
Coincidentally, the 6.1-inch LCD version of the iPhone also frequently broke the news that will be postponed. This is mainly due to Morgan Stanley released a new research report, its analyst Katie Huberti (Katy Huberty claimed that until October of this year, Apple could fully distribute the new 6.1-inch LCD iPhone model, mainly because the LED backlight module problem caused the mass production time to be 6 weeks later than expected.
Earlier, Guo Mingxi said that the iPhone model of the 6.1-inch LCD screen will not enter the mass production stage until September, and the mass production time is later. The reason is that the case is late, but it will still be released in September. As for other obstacles to mass production. The problem is that the touch screen function has a low yield, but the situation is improving. Second, the design bottleneck that integrates the original deep sensor into the LCD screen leads to high production difficulty, but it has also been alleviated.
However, combined with the current news about the LCD version of the iPhone, it is still the most vocal model outside the world, even if it is delayed for some reasons, it will be difficult to block the enthusiasm of consumers. OLED may still be difficult to catch up with Samsung. In the footsteps, but the situation of the Samsung family is not going on like this.
2. Shentian Ma A: Construction of the second phase of the 6th generation LTPS AMOLED production line;
Shen Tianma A (000050) announced on the evening of July 27th that in order to further enhance the company's market position in the small and medium-sized high-end display, especially in the AMOLED field, and accelerate the realization of the strategic goals of the global display industry leaders, the company intends to pass the wholly-owned subsidiary. Wuhan Tianma Microelectronics Co., Ltd. invested in the expansion of the 6th generation LTPS AMOLED project in Wuhan Tianma, expanding the production capacity of the 6th generation LTPS AMOLED production line, namely, investing in the second phase of the 6th generation LTPS AMOLED production line (Wuhan) (hereinafter referred to as the 'second phase project'), the total investment amount of the second phase project is about 14.5 billion yuan. The matter has been approved by the board of directors and is still subject to approval by the shareholders' meeting.
The announcement shows that the second phase of the project will expand the production capacity of the 6th generation LTPS AMOLED production line. After the second phase of the project is completed and put into production, the 6th generation LTPS AMOLED production line project and the 6th generation LTPS AMOLED production line second phase project (Wuhan) will form a monthly output of 37,500. The capability of flexible AMOLED display panel. On June 1, 2018, the company signed the "Cooperation Agreement on the 6th Generation LTPS AMOLED Production Line Phase II Project (Wuhan)" with the Wuhan Donghu Development Zone Management Committee.
In terms of project funds, the company increased capital of 8.5 billion yuan to the project company Wuhan Tianma (including the Donghu Development Zone Management Committee promised to coordinate the bank or other institutions to provide loans of 5 billion yuan to the company, the company raised funds of 3.5 billion yuan, the funds from the company The project company Wuhan Tianma will increase capital investment in phases; the project company Wuhan Tianma is expected to directly borrow 6 billion yuan from the syndicated loan (currently the estimated value, the specific amount is subject to the actual capital demand during the construction of the second phase project).
Shen Tianma A said that after decades of layout, the company has formed a layout of mainstream display technology from medium and small size from passive, a-Si TFT-LCD, LTPS TFT-LCD to LTPS AMOLED, supporting many domestic and foreign brand customers. The customized solution has the long-term small and medium size display market. After the project is completed and put into production, it will greatly enhance the company's production capacity and supply capacity in the high-end products field. The scale effect and economic benefits will be highlighted, which will help further Enhance the company's market position in small and medium-sized high-end displays, especially AMOLED applications, and accelerate the strategic goals of leading companies in the global display field.
The data show that AMOLED flexible display technology uses a non-breakable soft material substrate to replace the fragile glass substrate. It has the characteristics of bendability, high flexibility, light weight and free design. As the next generation of new display technology, it has become an OLED technology. The mainstream development direction and began to enter large-scale industrial applications, in the high-end comprehensive screen smart phones, smart wear, virtual reality (VR) and other fields performed well.
The reporter learned that Samsung and LG Korean manufacturers currently have absolute advantages in AMOLED flexible display technology. In addition, the main raw materials and processing equipment of AMOLED flexible display are mainly dependent on imports. Domestic panel companies generally believe that the market based on high-end display is broad. Market space and tight supply and demand relationship, the next few years is the key period for domestic OLED panel companies to catch up. In addition to Shen Tianma A, BOE, Visionox has also launched several related production lines, and quickly promoted the construction of related projects, which is conducive to Promoting capacity rampage as soon as possible and improving the yield rate will help to achieve large-scale project output as soon as possible, and also help Chinese enterprises to speak in the AMOLED flexible display industry.
China Securities Network
3.Micro LED supply chain actively invests in research and development to master key technologies and process patents;
As a new generation of display technology, Micro LED continues to receive market attention. In particular, the supply chain manufacturers of Apple Panels continue to invest in R&D. Display technology is the strength of Taiwanese industry. It has deep experience in technology and process.
In addition to traditional manufacturers such as AUO, Innolux, Jingdian, and Hon Hai, there are many teams in Taiwan that are researching Micro LED technology. Micro LEDs not only require certain display technologies, but also need to create compatible display driver ICs, mechanical components. , the circuit, in order to play the excellent performance of the Micro LED, so the supply chain needs to cooperate with each other.
Accumulate the first MicroLED driver IC
In 2018 SID Display Week (Display Week 2018), ITRI, 镎创科技, AUO respectively showed the latest products of Mini LED and Micro LED, and other related products including Innolux, Accumulation and so on.
For example, the industry will showcase the industry's first LED driver IC with True 16-Bit Grayscale's Mini LED and Micro LED, MBI5359, and show an ultra-small pitch Mini LED box that can be spliced at will. This function will help LED display. Realize HDR image specifications, and deliver high-gray, high-contrast quality images at a high refresh rate of 3840Hz.
Cai Zongda, deputy manager of the marketing department of the accumulation technology department, said: "There are still several mainstream technologies competing in the panel trend. Currently, LCD/OLED is in the process, LCD is competing with OLED for achieving HDR, and more energy-saving performance indicators. High-profile use of Mini LED The direct-lit backlight module with the number of light areas is used to improve the contrast of LCDs that have long been criticized. Many manufacturers have realized this concept, and the contrast effect of OLEDs is quite close. Mini LEDs are small and can achieve thousands of The dimming area of the area shortens the OD (optical distance), allowing the direct-lit backlight to be mounted in a slim display body."
Figure 1: Cai Zongda, Deputy Manager of the Marketing Department of the Accumulation Technology (source: Accumulation Technology)
Micro LEDs have more advantages in indoor display applications, including wider viewing angles, higher reliability, no moiré, etc. In addition, compared with SMD LEDs, Micro LEDs do not look at different viewing angles. Will produce color shift phenomenon, there will be no interference between LEDs.
Cai Zongda believes that: "The accumulated LED driver ICs have high channel counts and are equipped with scanning drivers. Compared with other market solutions, they can achieve up to 20-30 times the amount of area dimming, which is mass-produced, so many Panel manufacturers have introduced accumulation schemes. Micro LEDs are used as panel applications. Currently, the main cutting area is large displays. To import smaller size panels, PPI pointers will be the challenge of driving ICs. How to achieve higher integration allows Micro LEDs The driver IC solution is more reasonable, while meeting the visual effects requirements, it will be the focus of research and development.
Massive transfer is the primary challenge
When it comes to the development of Micro LED, what technologies still have breakthroughs? Huang Bingkai, manager of the product development division of Micro LED, said: "Micro LEDs require smaller equipment and require new equipment for grain transfer and huge transfer. The technology will be the first challenge. After the die is transferred to the PCB substrate, the flatness of the PCB is the second challenge. The uneven substrate will reduce the transfer yield. When the die transfer is completed, the driver IC needs to be lower. Constant current drive technology (less than 0.5Ma) to drive the Micro LED. Highly integrated driver IC with LED error/bad point prediction can overcome the wiring difficulties of limited PCB space and the yield detection after transfer."
Figure 2: Huang Bingkai, Department Manager, Accumulation Micro LED Product Development Division (source: Accumulation Technology)
For the market application of Micro LED, there is also related planning for accumulation. Cai Zongda said: "Accumulation has always focused on the field of LED driver ICs. For Micro LED related applications, high-integration ICs such as MBI5359/MBI5759 have been supplied as early solutions to various vendors. However, Micro LEDs are used in a wide range of applications, from large-scale Signage applications to small and medium-sized applications. The demand specifications vary widely, but common requirements such as low-current precision control below 100uA, and reduced power consumption will be the focus of Micro LED driver ICs. Accumulation will develop corresponding driver ICs according to different application intervals, so there will be differences in architecture selection and integration from current solutions. At present, we have started cooperation with system brand factories and large panel factories.
Figure 3: Flip chip and Face up chip difference (source: Accumulation Technology)
Figure 4: Difference between Mini LED and COB (source: Accumulation Technology)
Figure 5: 0.75 dot pitch Mini LED (source: Accumulation Technology)
Huang Bingkai also said: "Accumulation is expected to begin in the first quarter of 2019, and cooperate with customers to mass-produce the Mini LED display. The module solution for providing Mini LED+PCB+IC is not involved in the whole screen design. In 2020 The first quarter began mass production of Micro LED displays, with dot pitches below the P0.5 that Mini LEDs have yet to reach. The application market will focus on high-end applications such as indoor control, advertising and exhibitions."
eLux achieves breakthrough in fluid assembly technology
Another eLux company acquired by Foxconn. Founded in 2016, it is a startup that specializes in Micro LED's massive transfer technology.
Figure 6: eLux's fluid assembly and positioning technology is patented for maximum assembly speed (source: LEDinside)
eLux recently revealed that its fluid assembly and positioning technology has been patented to achieve maximum assembly speed, which is a major breakthrough in technology. At the seminar held by TrendForce, Lux founder and chief technology officer Paul Schuele Also share how to actually apply the fluid assembly transfer method to make a light-emitting display.
The company's investment in the production of Micro LED full-color screen samples this year. The founding team of the company is mostly based on LED technology, but the company is not a LED factory, nor LED epitaxial capacity, but its Micro LED The technology development and design capabilities are quite powerful, providing a complete solution, as well as MicroLED's PixeLED display technology.
AUO exhibits high-resolution full-color 8-inch Micro LED display
Micro LED is self-luminous display technology, adopts miniaturized LED array structure, with high brightness, high contrast, wide color gamut, wide viewing angle, fast response time, light weight and low power consumption. This year AU Optronics in SID 2018 The world's highest resolution full-color active 8-inch Micro LED display, using LTPS backplane drive technology, each pixel can independently drive illumination, enabling finer high dynamic contrast performance with low power consumption. LED size Less than 30um, the pixel density is up to 169 PPI, and combined with color conversion technology, can display more excellent and accurate color.
Figure 7: AUO exhibits the world's highest resolution full-color active 8-inch Micro LED display (source: AUO)
In addition to the research and development breakthrough of Micro LED, in the Mini LED backlight technology, AUO also exhibited an e-sports monitor with Mini LED backlight technology, esports notebook and VR head-mounted display panel, and rushed to high-end e-sports. And the niche-type application market. Mini LED backlight technology part, compared to the general edge-lit backlight, the direct-down Mini LED backlight can make the local dimming effect more accurate, providing higher brightness and higher dynamic contrast. The ultimate picture quality.
In the application of LTPS technology, AUO also launched panels for all kinds of mobile devices, including the world's first 13.3-inch UHD 4K narrow-frame LTPS panel supporting stylus. AUO has begun to provide customers with Mini LED backlit LCD panel samples for game monitors for customer inspection.
From this point of view, the progress of Micro LED is quite fast, and all major manufacturers are actively deployed in the market. The supply chain, such as accumulation, is also in this year's exhibition, launching key components and rushing to seize this business opportunity.
**Top of the page: Samsung MicroLED-146 British TV (source: Samsung) CTIMES
4. LCD Rongjing no longer BenQ materials will fade out to electric vehicles;
Under China's tens of billions of dollars to build a factory to produce large-size liquid crystal display (LCD) TV screens, under the impact of the industry, BenQ materials decided to reduce their dependence on LCD revenue, and slowly turned to the electric vehicle parts market.
Bloomberg reported that time returned to 2004, when the disc was still a lucrative market, but BenQ material was considered to be the time to exit the disc market. After that, the disc gradually became weaker and was gradually replaced by the flash drive and network download.
Nowadays, BenQ materials will fade out of the current Golden Chicken, no longer rely on the production of LCD components, and gradually turn to the electric vehicle battery parts market.
The size of BenQ's materials is not large, and its market value is only 199 million US dollars. Some people may think that the exit of the optical disc market in 2004 does not have much foresight, but its actions were deeply symbolic in the predicament of the industry at that time. In OLED (organic light-emitting diode With the rise of new technologies, LCDs are under pressure. With the large-scale production of LCD panels, China’s oversupply has caused LCD prices to plummet.
Chen Jianzhi, chairman and chief executive of BenQ Materials, said in an interview with Bloomberg that 'change is painful', but 'I don't see much room for growth in this business'.
In 2004, at the time, CD-ROM was still the core business of BenQ materials. Chen Jianzhi and other executives risked cutting off the relationship with Sony, the Japanese electronics giant, and gradually withdrew from the optical disc market. BenQ decided to produce polarizers for AU Optronics. BenQ The material finally stopped production of the disc in 2011.
BenQ's current revenue of 90% comes from polarizing plates. Chen Jianzhi hopes that the initial price can be reduced to 70%, and then gradually reduced. Polarized plates are important parts of LCD.
Chen Jianzhi intends to slowly move into the electric vehicle market. He said that BenQ materials have contacted a Japanese auto parts manufacturer to discuss the supply of parts for rechargeable batteries.
The timing of BenQ materials taking this move is at a time when the decline in LCD prices has hit the industry. According to the research institute Witsview Technology, the price of the 55-inch ultra-high-definition LCD screen fell by 4.8% from the previous month, much higher than the previous The average monthly decline of 2% was 2%. This is because Chinese companies have built tens of billions of dollars to build large-size LCD TV panels.
South Korea's LG Display has fallen 32% this year, which is expected to be the worst annual decline since 2011. Market analysts estimate that LG Display's operating loss this year will reach 476 billion won (about NT$13.1 billion) Yuan).
BenQ materials have also been affected. BenQ's share price, which rose 34% last year, fell 5.3% in the past year. From this point of view, the decision to fade out of the panel market is not so surprising.
Chen Jianzhi said, 'In the absence of technological advantages, the price decline will be very heavy.' He refers to the panel and polarizer. 'We must turn to other areas'.
Central agency
5. Samsung 'Failed' flexible display passed the US security test;
Sina Technology News Beijing time on July 27 afternoon news, Samsung Electronics subsidiary Samsung Display said on Friday that the company's recently developed unbreakable flexible display has passed the US security test, which will help the company promote the product.
Samsung Display is also one of Apple's suppliers. The company said the display can be used in a variety of devices, such as smartphones, tablets, portable game consoles and controllers on cars.
With the increasingly fierce competition for the development of innovative devices, Samsung Display and its competitors such as LG Display have been developing flexible displays for a long time.
According to the company's website, Samsung's new display is protected by plastic instead of glass, which is more flexible and less prone to breakage.
More importantly, a senior employee of Samsung Display revealed that the display has higher transparency and is almost close to glass, so it can be installed on devices such as smartphones.
Samsung showed that the display has been certified by Underwriters Laboratories, a test company of the US Occupational Safety and Health Administration, after undergoing 26 tests of falling from a height of 1.2 meters. After the test, the display will still work. The front, side or edges of the screen are not damaged.
The senior staff member of Samsung said that the US certification gives the product a good reputation, and we can start promoting this product globally, not just in the United States.
Samsung Electronics has always been considered likely to launch foldable screen devices in the future, as the company's mobile executives said in September last year that such devices are under development and need to overcome some technical obstacles before the release in 2018.
Such a device may help alleviate the concerns of Samsung Electronics, which is unable to create high-end Galaxy series mobile phone sales. (Mur)
6. LGD continues to lose money, panel makers will gradually differentiate in the future.
In the second quarter of 2018, the price of TV panels fell rapidly. South Korean panel maker LG Display paid out the loss transcripts for two consecutive quarters, and the loss in the second quarter also expanded. In contrast, AUO maintained its profitability. Many financial indicators have opened the gap with LGD. In this regard, AUO Chairman Peng Shuanglang pointed out that the next step in the panel market will be different, and in the past, when the LCD cycle, good time, when you lose, The pattern of losing money is not the same. Lejin Display's second quarter of 2018 revenue was 5.61 trillion won (about 2.97 billion US dollars), operating loss was 228.1 billion won, net loss in the quarter was 300.5 billion won, and EBITDA was 680.9 billion won. EBITDA benefit rate is 12%. Compared with AUO's second quarter of 2018, the revenue is NT$75.05 billion, operating net profit is 2.10 billion yuan, gross margin is 9.7%, operating net profit margin is 2.8%, EBITDA is 13.5%, and second quarter. The net profit attributable to the owner of the parent company was 1.25 billion yuan, and the basic earnings per share was 0.13 yuan. The two sides clearly opened the gap. In this regard, Peng Shuanglang said that the next step in the panel market will be different. The mainland manufacturers are in policy and government power. Support, in terms of capacity and scale In addition to government support, Korean manufacturers also have group support, and Taiwan is obviously weak in these areas. AUO has expanded its production lines, products and technologies, and moderately expanded production capacity in the current and future. Under the scale, it is the road of value competition. That is to say, AUO hopes to create more value regardless of the layout of products, customers or display technologies. Under the premise of different development paths, Peng Shuanglang believes that In the future, in the panel industry, each company will have different results at different stages. This is the same as the past when it was in the LCD cycle, when it was good, the loss mode was not the same. Although the second season TV panel The price has fallen rapidly, but AUO is committed to optimizing its product portfolio. At the same time, it is trying to adjust the development of high-end, niche products. Therefore, the profit is not particularly bad. The average unit price per square meter of AUO in the second quarter is US$361. In the first quarter, the amount of 363 US dollars fell by 2 US dollars. Looking forward to the third quarter, AUO estimates that large-size shipments will increase by 4 to 6% in the quarter. Under the adjustment of product mix, the average unit price in the third quarter is expected to be Season 2 As for small and medium size, AUO estimates that shipments in the third quarter will be reduced by 11-13%, mainly due to product line adjustments, towards larger applications. Meanwhile, AUO also estimates the third quarter. The rate will remain at a high water level. Peng Shuanglang said that in the second quarter, the client continued to adjust inventory, TV panel prices have considerable pressure, and the results of accelerated bottoming caused some different changes. In the case of imbalance between supply and demand, AUO Adhere to the value transformation strategy, flexibly adjust the product line and product mix with market changes, and perform well on high-end and value-added products. In the case of high price pressure, AUO cuts the proportion of shipments of bulk products, Season 2 The TV panel accounted for 38% of the revenue of the AUO display division, which was 11% lower than the same period in 2017; but Peng Shuanglang said that even if the proportion of shipments of TV panels was lowered, AUO's 75吋, 85吋 and high The TV panel sells well, and it is in short supply. Every month, shipments have a large growth. Peng Shuanglang said that the e-sports market has a good growth rate in 2018. AUO has been deeply ploughed for several years and is currently monitoring in e-sports. Market share of notebooks and notebook panels They are all the first, far beyond the sum of other panel manufacturers; In addition, in commercial products, such as automotive, industrial and large billboards, AUO's revenue share is also rising, and will continue to actively promote growth in the future. As for the sales of the World Cup, Peng Shuanglang said that in North America, Eastern Europe, Central and South America and other regions, TV sales have double-digit growth. In addition, the large-scale promotion of the mainland 618 has also brought the stock back to a healthy level. The third season is In the traditional peak season, customer inventory has declined, so the preparation for stocking in the peak season is positive, especially in high-end and oversized products, because of the strong profitability, the demand is also stronger. Next, the continental panel New capacity will be opened one after another. Peng Shuanglang said that although the new capacity will have little impact on the first half of 2018, after the end of the year to the next two to three years, the new capacity will have a big impact on the supply and demand situation. The overall competitiveness needs to be improved rapidly. AUO will closely observe market changes, including international trade conflicts, but the basic strategy will not change, and we hope that the operation can be in a stable and profitable state. D IGITIMES