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[ggx2ac]

Referencing two articles:

https://asia.nikkei.com/Business/Companies/Japan-Display-puts-OLED-panels-at-center-of-comeback-plan

https://asia.nikkei.com/Japan-Updat...outh-Korea-s-OLED-lead-with-cost-cutting-tech

____

The relevance to this is that Japan Display Inc. is the sole supplier of LCD screens for the Nintendo Switch and I have gone into detail before how JDI has suffered financial losses for three years in a row and is expected to go for another.

Onto the articles:

Japan Display Inc. affiliate company JOLED has developed a method of manufacturing OLED panels by printing the materials onto the panel which is expected to be cheaper than the evaporation method used by other manufacturers.

The Japan Display affiliate, formed from the merger of OLED panel development operations of Panasonic and Sony, has developed a process by which light-emitting material is deposited onto substrates much like a printer puts ink on paper. This requires a smaller upfront investment than the evaporation method used by such South Korean rivals as Samsung Electronics and also reduces the amount of material lost. Printed panels can cost 30-40% less to produce,

Mass production of the OLED panels for both JDI and JOLED is expected to begin in 2019, JDI will be focused on small sized panels for devices such as Smartphones using an improved version of the evaporation method (I don't know why), while JOLED will be focused on mid to large sized panels.

The Japanese company intends to begin mass production as early as 2019 of small panels using organic light-emitting diodes for such applications as smartphones. While affiliate JOLED plans to start printing midsize and large OLED panels for industrial equipment and televisions around then, Japan Display will employ an improved version of the standard evaporation process.

JDI and JOLED are looking for partners to help fund their investments. JDI require ¥200 billion for producing the small sized OLED panels while JOLED only requires ¥100 billion for their larger panels.

JOLED intends to solicit 100 billion yen ($887 million) to fund the project.

Japan Display began looking this month for a partner with which to split the smartphone panel investment, expected to total more than 200 billion yen ($1.77 billion). It plans to offer technology in exchange.

Given the massive outlays needed to compete in the display industry, the company is unlikely to find a suitable sponsor in Japan. Leading candidates include rival manufacturers in China, South Korea and Taiwan, with BOE Technology Group and Shenzhen China Star Optoelectronics Technology among those reportedly expressing interest.

I'm assuming these are worldwide figures for how the OLED market will grow and how it will compared to the LCD market in four years time.

Research firm IHS Markit expects the OLED panel market to triple in just five years to $46.3 billion in 2021. Smartphones are seen accounting for most of this, though the technology is also expected to find wider use in a variety of applications, including televisions, medical devices and digital signage.

While IHS Markit sees the LCD panel market, which centers on TVs, remaining larger in terms of scale at $91.9 billion, it forecasts growth of just 5% over the same period.

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Of course JDI will still produce LCD screens, the point is that they are focusing on OLED panels because they have to remain competitive with LG and Samsung whose investments into OLED technology and manufacturing have paid off by gaining a foothold into the OLED TV market and securing contracts making OLED panels for Apple's iPhone X for example.

Who knows how long lasting or niche LCD screens will become in the future like CRT displays, OLED screens are self-illuminating displays which means they do not require backlights to give brightness to the screen. This is affecting one company I've mentioned in the link above called Minebea Mitsumi, they control 70% to 80% of the market share worldwide for backlights used in LCD screens especially Smartphones. They are quite aware that OLED screens will eat into their revenue of LCD backlights that it could cause the company to downsize or even go bankrupt if that was the only thing they manufactured.

When will Nintendo put OLED screens in their consoles? You can start hoping for 2019 but that remains doubtful.

 

[SinCityAssassin]

Trying to get back the apple market huh?

 

[Hero of Legend]

Fuck OLED! The burn-in risks will drive me batty! Unless they finally fixed that, I hope Nintendo never uses them.

 

[Ascenion]

Fuck OLED! The burn-in risks will drive me batty! Unless they finally fixed that, I hope Nintendo never uses them.

They aren’t even that bad anymore. The TVs barely have it happen at all.

 

[Smiles and Cries]

Swirch plus with 1080P screens

 

[Fiendcode]

Switch Lite with OLED screen spring 2019.

 

[Transistor]

Switch revision incoming

 

[phanphare]

you think this has to do with the Switch? I doubt Nintendo would use an oled screen for the Switch, they aren't well suited for video games

 

[HStallion]

Wonder if Sony is interested in this considering their current line of OLED TV's use panels made by LG.

 

[SinCityAssassin]

you think this has to do with the Switch? I doubt Nintendo would use an oled screen for the Switch, they aren't well suited for video games

The only real relevancy with the Switch is that it may allow this specific supplier the competitiveness it needs to survive into 2020. As Nintendo's sole screen manufacturer, that's important. Whether or not Nintendo partakes in their supplier's new ventures for a revision of the Switch is only speculation.

 

[ggx2ac]

you think this has to do with the Switch? I doubt Nintendo would use an oled screen for the Switch, they aren't well suited for video games

Indirectly.

The main thing is that JDI are the sole supplier of LCD screens for the Nintendo Switch so it is not unusual to keep an eye out for a company that has had three financial losses in a row and are banking on OLED manufacturing to save their arse considering that they are losing clients to LG and Samsung.

We can look at this the other way around where the failure of the Wii U badly affected one of the companies that was involved in manufacturing it.

 

[inner-G]

Cheaper OLEDs?

Sounds good to me

 

[ggx2ac]

you think this has to do with the Switch? I doubt Nintendo would use an oled screen for the Switch, they aren't well suited for video games

Although I already responded to your first question, I was wondering about the statement you made following that.

Do you mean that OLED screens in general are not suited for video games? It's just I'm wondering how that would affect home console owners because TV owners would be more likely to switch to OLED TVs compared to LCD TVs since OLED TVs are much thinner/lighter and can come in larger sizes with better viewing angles and colour contrast ratios compared to LCD TVs.

Plasma TVs are barely around anymore and OLED TVs are only going to gain more traction as they become cheaper to buy.

 

[ThoseDeafMutes]

Swirch plus with 1080P screens

Switch Lite with OLED screen spring 2019.

If they can get costs down, I guess it's possible. 2019 is right on schedule for their 2-year refresh cycle on handhelds, if they're going down that path.

I'd prefer either keeping 720p or upgrading straight to 1440p for the revised (slightly larger) screen, though. Keeps scaling constant for 720p content either way, and 1440p would allow pixel doubled 720p games while also having crisp, high res media stuff.

 

[Smiles and Cries]

If they can get costs down, I guess it's possible. 2019 is right on schedule for their 2-year refresh cycle on handhelds, if they're going down that path.

I'd prefer either keeping 720p or upgrading straight to 1440p for the revised (slightly larger) screen, though. Keeps scaling constant for 720p content either way, and 1440p would allow pixel doubled 720p games while also having crisp, high res media stuff.

1440p even better, I think the Switch deserves that 2 year revision it would keep things interesting

 

[ggx2ac]

If they can get costs down, I guess it's possible. 2019 is right on schedule for their 2-year refresh cycle on handhelds, if they're going down that path.

I'd prefer either keeping 720p or upgrading straight to 1440p for the revised (slightly larger) screen, though. Keeps scaling constant for 720p content either way, and 1440p would allow pixel doubled 720p games while also having crisp, high res media stuff.

They'd probably have to make two models then like the 3DS.

A larger 1440p OLED screen Switch revision can help justify keeping a higher cost of $280 or more while a 720p OLED screen Switch revision can help to sell a cheaper Switch. (More OLED panels produced would lead to cheaper costs.)

The system can get thinner and smaller thanks to an SoC die shrink and use of OLED over LCD with backlights.

Of course this is all speculation and Nintendo may end up sticking with LCD although an OLED revision could be an incentive to get people to replace their old Switch models like people going from 3DS to 3DS XL or New 3DS/XL.

 

[Mr. Wonderful]

If they can get costs down, I guess it's possible. 2019 is right on schedule for their 2-year refresh cycle on handhelds, if they're going down that path.

I'd prefer either keeping 720p or upgrading straight to 1440p for the revised (slightly larger) screen, though. Keeps scaling constant for 720p content either way, and 1440p would allow pixel doubled 720p games while also having crisp, high res media stuff.

I have a feeling 720p OLED HDR would be the better compromise.

 

[ThoseDeafMutes]

They'd probably have to make two models then like the 3DS.

A larger 1440p OLED screen Switch revision can help justify keeping a higher cost of $280 or more while a 720p OLED screen Switch revision can help to sell a cheaper Switch. (More OLED panels produced would lead to cheaper costs.)

The system can get thinner and smaller thanks to an SoC die shrink and use of OLED over LCD with backlights.

Of course this is all speculation and Nintendo may end up sticking with LCD although an OLED revision could be an incentive to get people to replace their old Switch models like people going from 3DS to 3DS XL or New 3DS/XL.

I have a feeling 720p OLED HDR would be the better compromise.

I mean I think it's fair to assume that, on balance of probabilities, they are not going to go for an OLED display. It's possible but I'd also just as soon assume they won't.

HDR support is something I absolutely expect from a revised dock, but as to whether we'd get it on handheld mode or not, I'm a bit more unclear.

 

[lynux3]

Finally! Took them long enough to start getting serious about OLED again.

 

[Spartancarver]

Fuck OLED! .

Yeah gonna go out on a limb and say you've never actually seen one in person if you're saying this.

The picture quality shits all over LED. There is no comparison.

 

[Pein]

That’s dope, Samsung basically own the oled market and can’t even keep up with demand.

Hopefully oled in everything is gonna happen.

 

[Izuna]

This makes me very happy.

8K OLED incoming.

 

[Caffeine]

yes pls more oled displays thats something I want to upgrade to in the future.

 

[-Horizon-]

The switch with an oled would be great. I still really like the og vita screen.

Hope this is for the switch 2 and not a "NEW" switch.

 

[Hero of Legend]

Yeah gonna go out on a limb and say you've never actually seen one in person if you're saying this.

The picture quality shits all over LED. There is no comparison.

I have and it's great, but I'm VERY fussed when it comes to burn-in risks and it's made me never want to buy one because of it.

 

[gogogow]

Yeah gonna go out on a limb and say you've never actually seen one in person if you're saying this.

The picture quality shits all over LED. There is no comparison.

Huh? He doesn't like the (high) burn-in and image retention risks of an OLED panel. Why did you remove that part from his post?

 

[Renekton]

I just want OLED TVs smaller than 55"