BOE Latest Panel Development Plans – July 2022

We have some updates from one of the smaller LCD panel manufacturers BOE about their panel development plans. This is BOE as a panel manufacturer, as opposed to any specific monitor/display manufacturer, but it gives an indication of where monitors are likely to go in the future by looking ahead at the panel production plans. Please keep in mind that the production dates are not set in stone and may change, and there is then also a lag of several months before a panel is produced, then used in a display and launched to market. We have updated our panel parts database with all the new information we have as well as best we can.

If you missed it, we have recently published updates from LG.Display and AU Optronics too!

General Themes

A lot of the information we have focused on technology improvements in general, and there is less specific information about actual panels and their specs than we have from other manufacturers. We will try and summarise as best we can. BOE are focusing their panel development and investment on several key themes:

• Increasing refresh rates
• Offering wider colour gamut
• Improved HDR experience including Mini LED backlights
• New size ultrawide and 16:10 formats

Improved contrast ratios for IPS-type panels with “True Black”

If you read our LG.Display update you will be familiar with “IPS Black”, their new technology for offering improved black depth, contrast ratio and off-angle viewing of dark content. LG.Display aren’t the only ones investing in development to improve the contrast ratio of IPS panels. BOE are also doing something similar with their ADS technology (IPS-type) and aim to offer contrast ratios of 2000:1 later this year through their so-called “True Black” technology.

There were plans to produce samples of new panels in 23.8″ and 27″ size with 2560 x 1440 resolutions during Q2 2022 which means these would hopefully be available for display manufacturers to explore for their monitors now. Then later on around Q3 2022 there would be 27″ and 31.5″ models with 3840 x 2160 “4K” resolutions. Finally, around Q4 2022 there are plans to produce a sample of a 34″ 3440 x 1440 resolution panel. It will be very interesting to see what improvement this new technology might bring.

OQD Film for Wide Colour Gamut

One area BOE are developing is the use of a new “OQD” film (we believe this stands for Oxide Quantum Dot). They report that this has a few advantages over traditional QD coatings including being toxic element-free (QD contains Cd/Se apparently), has an improved light efficiency (~90% vs ~70%), no edge degradation and offers the same kind of benefits with wide colour gamut boosting it up to around 170% sRGB.

BOE should already have the first generation 1 panel in production now offering 99.5% coverage of DCI-P3 and Adobe RGB spaces, as well as 83% BT.2020. There is a 27″ sized panels (panel tech not listed but we expect this to be their ADS technology, IPS-type) with 3840 x 2160 “4K” resolution which features this OQD coating and the above mentioned colour space coverage. It has a 300 cd/m² brightness and has been in mass production since Sept 2020.

Generation 2 options with HDR 600 supported included this time and further Eyesafe certification benefits (details unclear). There is already a 27″ 4K panel in production with 400 cd/m² (no HDR 600 on this option), and plans for a 31.5″ 4K with HDR 600 in Q4 2022.

BOE also aim to boost this colour gamut a little further with generation 3, with coverage up to 90% BT.2020. They are planning a 31.5″ sized panel (tech not listed but again expected to be IPS-type) with 3840 x 2160 “4K” resolution and 500 cd/m² brightness (SDR), and HDR 600 support. Production is now listed for Q2 2023.

34″ Ultrawide with 5120 x 2160 Resolution

Linked to the above OQD Film panels and perhaps most interesting is a planned 34″ ultrawide model with a 5120 x 2160 (WUHD) resolution. This will be a generation 2 OQD panel with 99.5% Adobe RGB and DCI-P3 colour gamut coverage and Eyesafe 8.0. This is expected to go in to production in Q1 2023.

There is also a suggestion that there may be another version of this panel with HDR600 support and a slightly smaller colour gamut of 98% DCI-P3. This version seems to be listed for Q4 2022 production.

High PPI and 8K Resolutions

BOE are also focusing on increasing the resolution of their monitor panels in line with what we see happening in video recording, streaming services and mobile/tablet devices. There are plans for several new panels.

• 31.5″ panel with a 7680 x 4320 resolution (280 PPI), 350 cd/m² brightness (400 cd/m² peak) and a wide colour gamut covering 99% DCI-P3 and Adobe RGB. This should now be in production as of Q2 2022.
• 27″ panel with 5120 x 2880 resolution (210 PPI), 350 cd/m² brightness, HDR 600 support (600 cd/m² peak), 98% DCI-P3 colour gamut. This is listed for Q4 2022 production.
• 31.5″ panel with 6034 x 3384 resolution (210 PPI), 350 cd/m² brightness, HDR 600 support (600 cd/m² peak), 98% DCI-P3 colour gamut. This is listed for Q1 2023 production.
• The 34″ ultrawide panel discussed above as well, with 5120 x 2160 resolution (160 PPI), 400 cd/m² brightness, HDR 600 support (600 cd/m² peak), 98% DCI-P3 colour gamut. This is listed for Q4 2022 production.

Mini LED Backlights for Improved HDR Local Dimming

BOE are also focusing on developing new panel options with more local dimming zones for improved HDR experiences in the desktop monitor space. There will be panels produced from 27″ all the way up to 44.5″ with local dimming zones starting from 1,152 and will all support HDR 1000. Unless otherwise stated, these are all IPS-type panels.

There are several Mini LED backlight options being developed. These include:

Entry level options

• 27″ with 2560 x 1440 resolution, 240Hz refresh rate, 99% DCI-P3 gamut – this will have 1152 dimming zones with 1152 LED’s and is scheduled for production from Sept 2022.
• 27″ with 3840 x 2160 4K resolution, 144Hz refresh rate, 99% DCI-P3 gamut – this will have 1152 dimming zones with 1152 LED’s and is scheduled for production from Dec 2022.

Mainstream options

• 27″ with 2560 x 1440 resolution, 165Hz refresh rate, 99% DCI-P3 / 95% Adobe RGB gamut – this will have 1152 dimming zones but with 4608 LED’s, and was scheduled for production from June 2022.
• 27″ with 3840 x 2160 4K resolution, 60Hz refresh rate, 99% DCI-P3 / 95% Adobe RGB gamut – this will have 1152 dimming zones but with 4608 LED’s, and was scheduled for production from June 2022.
• 31.5″ with 3840 x 2160 4K resolution, 144Hz refresh rate, 98% DCI-P3 / 99% Adobe RGB gamut – this will have 1152 dimming zones but with 4608 LED’s, and was scheduled for production from July 2022.
• 31.5″ with 3840 x 2160 4K resolution, 60Hz refresh rate, 98% DCI-P3 / 99% Adobe RGB gamut – this will have 1152 dimming zones but with 4608 LED’s, and was scheduled for production from July 2022.
• 34″ curved 1500R ultrawide (VA-type technology) with 3440 x 1440 resolution, 165Hz refresh rate, 97% DCI-P3 gamut – this will have 1152 dimming zones but with 4608 LED’s, and was scheduled for production from April 2022.
• 34″ curved 1500R ultrawide (IPS-type) with 3440 x 1440 resolution, 165Hz refresh rate, 97% DCI-P3 gamut – this will have 1152 dimming zones but with 4608 LED’s, and is scheduled for production from Q3 2022.
• 34″ curved 3800R ultrawide (IPS-type) with 3440 x 1440 resolution, 165Hz refresh rate, 97% DCI-P3 gamut – this will have 1152 dimming zones but with 4608 LED’s, and is scheduled for production from Oct 2022.

High end options

• 27″ with 5120 x 2880 high PPI resolution, 60Hz refresh rate, 98% DCI-P3 gamut – this will have 2304 dimming zones but with 9216 LED’s, and is scheduled for production from Feb 2023.
• 31.5″ with 3840 x 2160 4K resolution, 60Hz refresh rate, 98% DCI-P3 / 99% Adobe RGB gamut – this will have 2304 dimming zones but with 9216 LED’s, and is scheduled for production from Sept 2022.
• 44.5″ curved ultrawide 1500R (VA-type) with 5120 x 1440 resolution (32:9 aspect ratio), 60Hz refresh rate, 95% DCI-P3 gamut – this will have 1152 dimming zones but with 4308 LED’s, and is scheduled for production from March 2023.

Also mentioned but with less details at this time are:

• 31.5″ panel with 3840 x 2160 4K resolution and 60Hz refresh rate and HDR 1400 support (all the others listed here are HDR 1000). This one would have 4608 dimming zones apparently but with a whopping 18,432 LED’s, and is planned for a possible Q3 2023 production.
• 31.5″ panel with 3840 x 2160 4K resolution and 240Hz refresh rate. This one would have 4608 dimming zones apparently (number of LED’s not listed but expected to be 18,432 like the panel above), and is planned for a possible Q4 2022 production start although it feels like this might well slip given the date for the 60Hz panel above.
• 31.5″ panel with 8K resolution and 60Hz refresh rate. This one would have “5K+” dimming zones apparently (number of LED’s not listed) and is planned for a possible H1 2023 production.

Dual-Cell (“BD Cell”) Technology for Further HDR Improvements

BOE are also focusing on new technologies to enhance the HDR experience further than Mini LED backlights, with even more finite control of the dimming zones and in an effort to compete with the ever-popular OLED technology in this space. One such development is in their BD Cell technology which they say will help work towards pixel-level dimming, has fast operating latency and will help reduce or eliminate halos and blooming on content.

While quite old now, the following comes from a May 2020 BOE press release talking about BD Cell usage for their 65″ panel which win a SID 2020 Display Industry award, telling us more about what this technology can offer:

The 65-Inch UHD BD Cell Display from BOE Technology

As a breakthrough in thin-film transistor (TFT)-LCD technology, BOE’s dual-cell panel—referred to as “BD Cell” for short—offers several important technical advancements that conventional LCD screens don’t. The display uses pixel-level ultra-fine backlight control technology and a brand-new integrated circuit (IC) driving technology to make the million-level contrast ratio rate and 12 bits’ color depth come true, accurately displaying more natural and true-to-life colors. The contrast ratio of a conventional LCD screen is 3,000:1 with 0.2 nits as the lowest brightness. The BD Cell’s screen can raise the contrast ratio up to 150,000:1 and decreasing brightness to 0.003 nit. In terms of combining LED local dimming with BD Cell technology, the contrast ratio can be as high as 2,000,000:1. Moreover, while a conventional LCD screen’s color depth is 8 bit, BD Cell is capable of boosting the color depth as high as 12 bit with an enhanced IC driving algorithm. On the other hand, BD Cell incorporates advantages of an LCD screen’s stableness and technological maturity, with no image sticking.

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BOE have two monitor-size panels in their plans featuring BD Cell technology although not a lot of information is provided at this time:

• 31.5″ with 3840 x 2160 4K resolution – this is listed as a 1D backlight unit with “edge type” dimming. There is a 100,000:1 contrast ratio spec along with 99% DCI-P3 gamut, and the spec also implies perhaps 983K zones. It’s not 100% clear what this panel will offer with the limited info, more as we get it.
• 31.5″ with 3840 x 2160 4K resolution – this is listed as a 2D backlight unit with “direct type” dimming. Same 100,000:1 contrast ratio spec along with 99% DCI-P3 gamut as the other panel. This implies pixel-level dimming but again the information isn’t 100% clear at this stage.

Increased Refresh Rates for Gaming (ADS / IPS-type)

BOE also have a focus on improving their panel options for gaming screens with their ADS (IPS-type) technology. Already in mass production are a range of panels in sizes of 23.8″, 27″, 31.5″, 29″ and 34″ with a range of high refresh rates up to 240Hz available.

More interesting and different are their other planned IPS-type panels they are working on:

• 27″ with 1920 x 1080 and 360Hz – Q3 2022
• 27″ with 2560 x 1440 and 240Hz – Q3 2022
• 27″ with 2560 x 1440 and 165Hz but with 1152 zone Mini LED backlight – Q2 2022
• 27″ with 3840 x 2160 and 144Hz – Q3 2022
• 31.5″ with 2560 x 1440 and 240Hz – Q3 2022
• 31.5″ with 3840 x 2160 and 144Hz, along with a 1152 zone Mini LED backlight – Q3 2022
• 31.5″ with 3840 x 2160 and 240Hz – being planned for Q4 2022 production
  
  
• 29″ ultrawide with 2560 x 1080 and 360Hz – being planned for Q3 2022 production
• 34″ ultrawide with 2560 x 1080 and 200Hz – H2 2022

New high refresh rate VA-type panels

BOE are also expanding their range of VA-type technology panels, with options planned from 23.8″ all the way up to 44.5″ in size. The models in development or in planning are:

• 23.8″ with 1920 x 1080 and 144Hz – development date 2022
• 23.8″ with 1920 x 1080 and 165Hz – development date 2022
• 24.5″ with 1920 x 1080 and 144Hz – only currently in planning phase
• 24.5″ with 1920 x 1080 and 165Hz – only currently in planning phase
  
  
• 27″ curved panel with 1920 x 1080 and 144Hz – development date 2022
• 27″ curved panel with 1920 x 1080 and 165Hz – development date 2022
• 27″ curved panel with 2560 x 1440 and 144Hz – only currently in planning phase
• 27″ curved panel with 2560 x 1440 and 165Hz – only currently in planning phase
• 31.5″ curved panel with 2560 x 1440 and 144Hz – only currently in planning phase
• 31.5″ curved panel with 2560 x 1440 and 165Hz – only currently in planning phase
  
  
• 29.5″ curved (1550R) ultrawide with 2560 x 1080 and 200Hz – Q2 2022
• 29.5″ curved (1550R) ultrawide with 2560 x 1080 and 360Hz – in planning phase for possible Q4 2022 production
• 34″ curved (1500R) ultrawide with 3440 x 1440 and 240Hz – some time in 2022
• 44.5″ curved (1500R) ultrawide with 5120 x 1440 and 165Hz – Q4 2022 – this is different to the 44.5″ Mini LED panel discussed earlier as that had 60Hz only.

New 3:2 Aspect Ratio Panel

Aimed at improving productivity for general and office work, BOE are planning a new 28.2″ sized panel which has an unusual 3:2 aspect ratio. Designed to replace 2x 19.5″ sized panels, this has a 3840 x 2560 resolution. It also has a wide colour gamut with 98% DCI-P3 and 400 nits brightness. It should be in mass production now apparently.

New 16:10 Aspect Ratio Options in 25.9″ size

There’s still a portion of the market who prefer 16:10 aspect ratio screens to common 16:9 offerings. This has commonly been in the 24″ space with 1920 x 1200 resolutions in 16:10 format offering a bit of a vertical boost compared with the common 1920 x 1080 resolutions of the 16:9 format. BOE are still investing in this area but there’s been a change in direction since our last update and rather than focusing on another 24″ panel, they are instead developing a 25.9″ sized panel with a 2560 x 1600 resolution (16:10 aspect ratio). This will offer 15.6% more screen area than a 24″ panel and still a decent 117 PPI. There is a 10-bit colour depth and wide 95% DCI-P3 / 99% Adobe RGB colour gamut listed too. No production dates are listed for this one.

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