November 2, 2007

Samsung LCD TV Prices To Drop With New Discovery?

Samsung announced yesterday that they have discovered how to make LCD panels from ordinary glass plates, dramatically slashing the cost of production. The big question for consumers is whether this cost-savings will translate into price reductions on Samsung LCD HDTV's.

LCD's are usually made with non-alkaline glass that is resistant to the high temperatures and chemicals used in the production process. The new discovery uses soda-lime glass and a much lower temperature meaning less risk of color change. This is the reasoning behind the use of high quality glass in the current production process.

Research company DisplaySearch estimates that the new production process would lower the average price of a 32 inch LCD display by 6%, not a huge difference in the consumer's pocket but definitely a huge competitive advantage for Samsung. The process won't be ready for use in mass production for 4-5 years, by which time OLED displays will play an important role in the HDTV market and offer a better picture quality, so it remains to see whether this is a big discovery or not.

Via Register Hardware