Mobile Touch Panels Reach 122 Million Shipments in 6 Years

As was its due, DisplaySearch looked at current marketing conditions and trends in order to find out what the market for tablet and netbook touch panels will look like in 2016, finding that shipments will grow considerably.

As some may know, the ASP (average selling price) of touch panels measuring 5 to 10.2 inches has been on a quick decline.

This is because the number of suppliers that create such displays, which then end up in netbooks and whatever slates other companies are making, has been growing.

Granted, this market segment is dominated by 9.7-inch panels, but 7-inch models, like the ones used in ViewSonic's 7-inch slate and Samsung's Galaxy Tab, will also surge.

As far as the entire market is concerned, worldwide touch panels will reach 7.9 million square meters in 2010 and will grow to over 10 million during 2011.

This makes production capacity (3-inch equivalents) correspond to 296 million units per month and 391 million units per month in 2010 and 2011, respectively.

According to DisplaySearch, touch panel shipments for netbooks and tablets PCs of 5 to 10.2 inches will amount to 19.5 million in 2010 and 122 million in 2016.

“[The use] of touch screens in medium and large-size electronic devices such as mini-note/slate PCsand all-in-one PCs, as well as education/training applications, is rapidly increasing,” noted Jennifer Colegrove, PhD, Director of Display Technologies for DisplaySearch.

“Several touch screen module manufacturers are expanding capacity or adjusting technology to offer projected capacitive touch panels in an effort to take advantage of the growth spurt in this segment,” he added.

“However, with touch screen prices quickly falling, it is important for suppliers to have the most efficient supply chain in order to remain competitive,” Colegrove went on to saying.

The full DisplaySearch press release can be found here.