The sales of iPhone X turned out to be less than market expectation, so Samsung has lowered the utilization rate of OLED production lines. The tight supply of OLED panels over the past two years has also been eased. According to WitsView, a division of TrendForce, Apple has initiated the trend of OLED panels, and it is estimated that the penetration rate of OLED panel in smartphones will reach 46% by 2021. Mini LED is overwhelmed by OLED’s technology maturity and competitive costs, so it might be hard for Mini LED to grow in the smartphone market in short term.
The Taiwan government has devised the “Two-year solar power promotion plan” with the aim to increase 1.52 GW (1,520MW) of grid-connected capacity between July 2016 and June 2018. However, EnergyTrend, a division of TrendForce, expects that total grid-connected capacity would be 1,072MW by the end of plan, which means only 71% of the original goal would be achieved.
According to the latest IT panel shipment report of WitsView, a division of TrendForce, the total shipments of PC monitor panels and notebook panels in 2017 were 314.94 million pieces, a YoY increase of 3%. In 2018, IT panel makers will focus on reducing border size, increasing viewing angle and resolution. Vendors also aim to drive shipments through specification upgrade. It is expected that the total shipments of PC monitor panels and notebook panels will reach 326.37 million pieces in 2018, a YoY increase of 3.6%.
5G is expected to enter commercial operation in 2020, while vehicles become more intelligent, networked and electric, driving the development of SiC and GaN, the third-generation semiconductor materials. TrendForce estimates that the revenue for SiC substrates and GaN substrates will be US$180 million and US$3 million respectively in 2018.
While conventional LED components are used for backlight, Micro LED and Mini LED technology have been used for self-emitting in displays of consumer electronics. Every LED will then stand for a pixel, increasing the number of LED wafers used by companies. It is estimated that wafers for applications using Micro LED and Mini LED will account for 11.4% of the total LED wafers used worldwide by 2022, according to LEDinside, a division of TrendForce. These applications will become a key driver of the market demand.