The current flat panel display industry focuses primarily on the development of new technologies and products for large displays and high-resolution images. The development of this industry relies on the development of flexible displays in the years to come. Compared to conventional displays, flexible displays are thin, light and less prone to breakage. Hence, it is expected that flexible displays can replace current display devices and create new ones. It is expected that these factors will create lucrative flat panel market opportunities worldwide.

What is a flat panel display?

A flat-panel display (FPD) is a digital viewing system that helps people see information (still objects, moving images, text, or other visual material) in a wide range of variety of consumer electronics, entertainment, personal computers, and mobile devices, and many forms of medical, transportation, and industrial equipment. These are much lighter and thinner than standard cathode ray tube (CRT) TV sets and video displays and are typically less than 10 centimeters (3.9 in) thick.

Flat-panel displays can be divided into two categories of display devices: static and volatile. In order to retain their state, volatile displays require that pixels are regularly refreshed electronically (e.g., LCDs). Static flat-panel displays rely on materials whose color state is bistable (e.g. Sony's e-book reader tablets), and as such flat-panel displays keep the text or images on the screen even when the device is switched off. Flat-panel displays have replaced old CRT displays almost totally.

Types of flat panel displays

Two of the most common types of flat panel displays combine different technologies: the liquid crystal display, or LCD, and the plasma display panel (PDP). A more recent flat panel model integrates backlight light-emitting diodes (LEDs). Such flat panel display forms have started to replace the long-used display of CRT or cathode ray tube found in older monitors and televisions for their ability to produce higher-quality images. The many flat panel display variants determine the image resolution and quality.

• Liquid Crystal Display (LCD)

An LCD flat panel comprises a solution of liquid crystal placed between two thin sheets of polarizing material. The crystals in the solution align when electricity is applied to prevent any light from passing through. To produce bright colors and dark shades, LCDs require advanced levels of ambient light. Many LCD flat panel displays are typically backlit by bright fluorescent lighting which helps create clear pictures. The black or darker portions of an image and other flat panel technologies are generally not replicated by LCD flat panels. LCD flat panels exist in a range of sizes and smaller than competing technologies like plasma displays that can be manufactured.

• Plasma Display Panel (PDP)

In comparison to LCD flat panel displays, plasma displays contain a gaseous material sandwiched between two glass panels that are activated by electric currents to produce a visual display. Plasma displays are capable of reproducing truer, "darker" blacks or shades and generally provide a broader viewing angle. One drawback to some plasma displays is the ability for objects in the viewing area to be permanently "burned." Through the use of glass, they are typically heavier and thicker than LCDs and therefore use more energy than LCDs.

• Light-Emitting Diode (LED) Displays

Despite being marketed as a new technology, LED displays are basically LCD panels that use light-emitting diodes as backlight rather than conventional fluorescent lights. These units use the same technology of liquid crystal diode found in LCDs, but LED displays can be made even thinner than it was before due to the minute size of LED lighting. Fluorescent lighting is also believed to outlive LEDs. "Edge-lit" LEDs contain lighting along the display sides, which results in a thinner design.

To conclude

The current flat panel display market focuses on the development of new technologies and products mainly for large displays and high-resolution images. The demand for flat panel displays is expected to focus on flexible displays in the future. Compared to conventional displays, flexible displays are thin, light, and less susceptible to breakage. Hence, it is anticipated that flexible displays can replace current display devices and develop new ones. It is expected that these factors will create a lucrative flat panel display market opportunities worldwide.
There has been an increase in demand for interactive displays in schools, institutions, and universities across the world. These displays are useful for learning and teaching purposes like effective classroom interaction, student achievements, and overall productivity. The interactive display provides numerous advantages like increased level of engagement between students and teachers, enabling students with physical disabilities to learn better, providing learning flexibility, saving teaching costs, and allowing students to save lessons for further examination. An interactive flat panel display also makes it easy for teachers to exchange text, video, and audio files with students.