DisplaySearch announced it forecasts that touch screen shipments for table and slate PCs will reach 60 million units in 2011.
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Unedited press release follows:
Touch Screens in Tablet PCs Forecast to Reach 60M in 2011
Apple to Consume Majority of Touch Screens for Tablet PCs in 2011 and 2012
Santa Clara, Calif., March 14, 2011—According to the DisplaySearch Q1’11 Touch Panel Market Analysis update, touch screen shipments for tablet (or slate) PCs are forecast to reach 60M units in 2011. Apple will likely continue to account for the majority of tablet PC touch screens in 2011 and 2012, yet other brands could catch up in 2012 and beyond. DisplaySearch forecasts total touch panels for tablet PCs to reach 260M units in 2016, up 333% from 2011.
“Tablet PCs are the fastest growing application for touch screens,” noted Jennifer Colegrove, PhD, Vice President of Emerging Display Technologies for DisplaySearch. “Most tablet PC products will leverage multi-touch projected capacitive technology, following Apple’s lead. At the same time, a small amount of tablet PCs are using resistive touch, since it is less expense and enables handwriting recognition. There are also some tablet PCs that use digitizers for handwriting recognition and drawing.”
Figure: Touch Screens for Tablet PC Shipment Forecast ( in Millions)
Source: DisplaySearch Q1’11 Touch Panel Market Analysis Update
The touch screen supply chain is evolving differently in each region, based on variations in touch screen technologies and customer needs. Taiwan suppliers are focusing on the overall value chain while expanding manufacturing capacity for touch panels. Following their success in mobile phones, Taiwanese suppliers are planning to achieve the same success with tablet PCs. In North America, Atmel, Synaptics, and IDT have announced new controller IC products for projected capacitive touch screens. Japanese suppliers have struggled to grow, due to the strength of the yen over other currencies. Several Japanese suppliers, such as Gunze and Suzutora, are expanding capacity of their ITO film lines.
More than 10 different structures are currently in use for projected capacitive touch screens. This is due to the different IP and manufacturing strengths and weakness of each supplier. Colegrove noted, “The suppliers that utilize simpler structures and fewer materials and processes, while maintaining performance, are likely to be the most successful in the touch panel market.”
Other key findings from the Q1’11 Touch Panel Market Analysis update include the following:
* AUO has achieved yield rates of more than 80% for on-cell touch in small/medium size displays, and has begun shipping DSC, portable navigation devices (PND), and mobile phone applications.
* HP unveiled the first touchscreen all-in-one PC to feature a 60° reclining display, enabling users to adjust the display’s position for a comfortable experience. Apple applied for a patent in 2010 with a similar solution. This type of ergonomic solution will boost touch adoption for all-in-one PCs in the future.
* At CES 2011, Sharp, Motorola, Lenovo, RIM PlayBook, Samsung, Dell, Freescale, Microsoft Kinect, PrimeSens, e OpenNI, MultiTouch Ltd, 3M, Touch Revolution, IDT, Stantum, LG Display, Wacom, Keytec, and Samsung all had products with touch or touch screen demonstrations.
* Touch controllers are seen as increasingly critical for touch solutions in mobile phones and slate PCs.
The Q1’11 update serves as a supplement to the DisplaySearch 2010 Touch Panel Market Analysis. This report covers the progress of the fast-growing touch industry, including touch suppliers, newly-launched touch products, trends, trade show/conference reviews, price trends and revised forecasts for rapidly changing categories.
For more information on this report, please contact Charles Camaroto at 1.888.436.7673 or 1.516.625.2452, or contact@displaysearch.com or contact your regional DisplaySearch office in China, Japan, Korea or Taiwan.
About DisplaySearch
Since 1996, DisplaySearch has been recognized as a leading global market research and consulting firm specializing in the display supply chain, as well as the emerging photovoltaic/solar cell industries. DisplaySearch provides trend information, forecasts and analyses developed by a global team of experienced analysts with extensive industry knowledge and resources. In collaboration with the NPD Group, its parent company, DisplaySearch uniquely offers a true end-to-end view of the display supply chain from materials and components to shipments of electronic devices with displays to sales of major consumer and commercial channels.
About The NPD Group, Inc.
The NPD Group is the leading provider of reliable and comprehensive consumer and retail information for a wide range of industries. Today, more than 1,800 manufacturers, retailers, and service companies rely on NPD to help them drive critical business decisions at the global, national, and local market levels. NPD helps our clients to identify new business opportunities and guide product development, marketing, sales, merchandising, and other functions. Information is available for the following industry sectors: automotive, beauty, commercial technology, consumer technology, entertainment, fashion, food and beverage, foodservice, home, office supplies, software, sports, toys, and wireless.