Samsung Electronics has developed a 57-inch liquid
crystal display panel, claimed to be the largest such panel in the
world.
The panel was produced on the company's fifth-generation TFT LCD
production line which began operation in September. The line can
accept glass up to 110cm by 130cm, making the 57-inch panel
possible.
There are no plans to begin mass production of the panel, which
was developed mainly to demonstrate and test the technology for
such size screens, said Samsung spokeswoman Park Sung Hae.
Samsung has yet to begin mass production of a 54-inch panel
announced last year. At present, offers a 46-inch panel as its
largest commercial product.
The 57-inch panel has a resolution of 1,920 pixels by 1,080
pixels, matching that required for widescreen, high-definition
television. Other attributes include a 1000:1 contrast ratio, 600
candela per square metre brightness level, maximum eight
milliseconds response time and 75% colour reproduction.
The panel itself measures 132.3cm by 76.5cm, is 4.75cm thick and
weighs 21.5kg. Power consumption is 350 watts at maximum
brightness.
In October Samsung broke ground on construction of a
seventh-generation LCD production line at its facility in
Tangjeong, south of Seoul. The line can handle glass up to a
maximum size of 187cm by 220cm and is expected to begin mass
production in mid-2005.
The line will be used by a joint venture the company plans to
form with Sony.
Martyn Williams writes for IDG News
Service