In recent years, COB (Chip on Board) display technology has made significant advancements, attracting many market participants due to its high performance and wide range of applications. COB is a technology that directly packages chips on a substrate. Displays used this technology offer notable advantages such as narrow pixel pitch, high resolution, and durability, making them an increasingly popular choice in the high-end display market. Currently, with continuous technological progress and rapidly growing market demand, COB displays are accelerating in popularity, and their applications are expanding.
Technological Innovations Drive Display Quality Improvement
On the technical level, COB display pixel pitch has progressively shrunk from early P1.5/P1.2mm to P0.7 and even P0.4, enabling resolutions to reach 8K and beyond, providing viewers with finer visual details. Meanwhile, COB has made significant improvements in color uniformity and brightness consistency. By refining the epitaxial wafer process, optimizing the consistency of the light-emitting chips, and enhancing the packaging process, manufacturers can better control mosaic color variation, color consistency, and edge-cutting issues, thereby significantly improving display quality. In particular, some manufacturers’ image engines and full grayscale calibration technology enable precise brightness and color accuracy, ensuring that displays maintain consistent color and smooth gradients even under varying brightness levels.
For example, NovaStar’s full grayscale calibration solution specifically targets Mura effects at different grayscale levels, assigning each level a dedicated calibration coefficient that allows displays to remain even and fine in low brightness. The dynamic engine performs real-time image analysis, enabling intelligent power management. This is particularly beneficial in meeting or broadcasting scenarios where SDR signal sources can appear with HDR-like visual effects, greatly enhancing COB display image quality. These innovations not only improve user experience but also establish COB displays as a standout choice in the high-end display market.
Widespread Expansion of Market Applications
In terms of market applications, COB displays are no longer limited to traditional engineering markets like command and control centers; they are gradually expanding to fields such as meeting rooms, studios, cinemas, and retail advertising. This transition is driven not only by technological maturity but also by the increasing demand for narrow-pitch, ultra-high-definition displays. As COB display resolution and quality improve, more commercial scenarios are adopting this technology to meet diverse display needs. For instance, in the high-end conference market, COB displays’ ultra-high definition and wide viewing angles provide clear, glare-free displays, while in security monitoring and control centers, their durability and high reliability are especially valuable.
Additionally, in commercial cinemas, COB displays, with their high contrast and rich color performance, provide an impressive visual experience. Compared to traditional projection methods, COB displays excel in brightness, color saturation, and image clarity, thereby enhancing the viewing experience. As demand continues to grow, COB displays are increasingly used in retail and advertising, where they offer strong visual impact, capturing customers’ attention and helping businesses increase brand exposure and advertising effectiveness.
Growing Number of Players Driving Market Competition
With the booming development of the COB display market, more companies are entering this field, from upstream chip suppliers to downstream display integrators. These players in the industry chain are pushing COB displays’ rapid growth, expanding market scale, and introducing new technologies and business models. Through improvements in materials and packaging processes, manufacturers are constantly optimizing COB displays’ color performance, contrast, and energy efficiency, enhancing product competitiveness.
Some technology leaders, such as NovaStar, have launched a series of core testing equipments specifically designed for COB displays, which have achieved large-scale application. These testing equipments enable unmanned, intelligent detection, measurement, and calibration, significantly improving yield and reducing production costs. NovaStar’s MLED Demura system can automatically and precisely calibrate brightness deviations; the MLED testing system can identify multi-angle panel defects, while the MLED Black Mosaic Inspection Equipment uses smart algorithms to optimize black color uniformity, effectively solving the issue of color unevenness in COB displays during production. These devices enhance COB displays’ production efficiency and quality, offering the market a broader range of high-quality products.
Future Outlook
In the fierce market competition, the contest between new and established players has made the COB display market more dynamic. Many new entrants attract customers through differentiated technical solutions and business positioning, while established companies further consolidate their market position with strong technological expertise and market resources. In the future, with continued capital investment and technological maturity, the COB display market is expected to expand further. COB displays are likely to become a mainstay in the high-end display market in the coming years, attracting more companies and creating more innovative applications.
In such a market environment full of opportunities and challenges, COB display technology will continue to iterate and evolve. With comprehensive improvements in display quality, stability, and application scenarios, COB displays will not only provide users with a better visual experience but also bring endless possibilities to the industry. In the future, the ongoing growth of the COB display market will continue to accelerate innovation and development in this technology, propelling the display industry toward higher quality, higher resolution, and smarter directions.
