Hsinchu, Taiwan,
With the imminent arrival of the High Definition TV (HDTV) era, AU Optronics ("AUO" or the " Company") (TAIEX: 2409; NYSE: AUO) emphasized its leading role as the industry technology innovator by introducing on Tuesday its latest commercialized technologies for LCD TVs. On the eve of the three-day FPD (Flat Panel Display) Taiwan 2006 exhibit to be held in Taipei June 14-16, AUO said it will demonstrate new HDTV technologies throughout its 37"LCD TV platform. The four areas AUO's innovative designs will cover are: Advanced MVA (AMVA) with low color washout and super high contrast ratio, Simulated Pulsed Driving (SPD) technology to solve the blurred motion problem with CRT-like 4ms response time, HiColor technology with LED backlight to achieve over 100% color saturation, and Image Processing Technology featuring natural color images and clear depth of view.
AMVA: A Fresh Visual Experience Featuring Low Color Washout and High Contrast Ratio (>1200:1)
AU Optronics successfully introduces the AUO Advanced MVA Technology (AMVA), utilizing low color washout to conquer the significant problem of color distortion with traditional wide viewing angle technology. This technology creates more domains than conventional multi-domain vertical alignment (MVA) LCDs and reduces the variation of transmittance in oblique angles. It productively improves color washout and provides better image quality in oblique angles than conventional VA LCDs. Also, it has been widely recognized worldwide that AMVA technology is one of the few ways to provide optimized image quality through multiple domains.
In addition, AMVA provides an extra-high contrast ratio of greater than 1200:1 by optimized color-resist implementation and a new pixel design. The result is a more comfortable viewing experience for the consumer, even on dimmer images. This high contrast technology can also achieve wide viewing angles of up to 178 degrees. AMVA, which the Company believes to be the most competitive solution in low color washout technology, has been applied to AUO TV panels ranging from 32" up to 42", and has attracted widespread attention among global brand-name TV customers in the United States, Europe and Japan.
Simulated Pulsed Driving (SPD) Technology Provides CRT-Like Image Quality
The performance of motion picture response time is an important requirement for LCD TVs. Conventional LCDs use hold-type driving methods that result in blurred images. AUO's Simulated Pulsed Driving (SPD) technology simulates impulse-type displays with the adjustment of pixel driving and scanning backlight to reach a CRT-like image quality in motion picture response time.
The technology can greatly reduce motion blur, and enable the image performance to reach optimal levels at 4ms equivalent gray to gray (8ms MPRT). The technology is also known as one of the few technologies ready for mass production and can be applied both to WXGA (1366x768) or Full HD (1920x1080) resolutions.
New HiColor Technology with LED Backlight for a Richer-than-Life Color Experience
AUO now builds on its successful 2005 development and commercialization of the HiColor technology utilizing CCFL backlight to reach 33% color saturation increase compared with conventional LCDs. This year AUO proves its technology leadership by further developing the new HiColor Technology with RGB LED backlight. The new HiColor Technology with LED backlight can reach 105% NTSC – a 45% increase from conventional 72% NTSC. It also provides the true natural performance of Red, Green and Blue and enables brighter, richer, and more vivid display colors.
In addition, AUO has adopted specific techniques to enhance the image performance of the LED backlight. The Color Management function can eliminate artificial colors caused by inconsistent chromaticity between light source and signal. The Gamut Enhancement function enhances and enriches colors. The Flexible Color Temperature Setting can change the intensity of the RGB LED to adjust the white point of backlight and meet the requirements of different applications with minimal luminance loss. Other advantages of LED backlights include instant light, low DC voltage, shock and vibration safe, fast response time, low temperature start, and an environmentally-friendly design that is both mercury and lead free.
Image Processing Technology –Providing Sharp, Vivid Images and Clear Depth of View
AUO's Image Processing Technology integrates the input image data management and the dynamic backlight control solution. The intrinsic image processing system circuit can dynamically adjust the contrast, sharpness, hue, color temperature, and color saturation to accommodate the image contents. Non-linear image processing can accommodate changes in the dynamics of human perception ideally used to overcome an existing problem with LCD TVs where a motion picture tends to loose its accuracy during darker states. AUO's Image Processing Technology enables vivid and sharp images, enhances color saturation, details in gray levels and contrast ratios, and retrieves natural colors. Customers can now enjoy the precise details of dark and night scenes on movies.
An added value of this technology is its energy and environmental conservation abilities as its dynamic backlight control function can automatically adjust the CCFL brightness.
AUO's Executive Vice President, Dr. Hui Hsiung, noted AUO's recent breakthrough technologies in LCD TV would have a major impact in the coming era of high definition TV. The four AUO commercialized TV technologies announced not only ensure higher-quality LCD TV images -- already surpassing CRT TVs or PDP -- but more importantly, they also mark a significant milestone in the LCD TV market, giving AUO's TV panels a unique position among other competitors. Most brand-name clients adopt AUO's advanced technology panels on their high-end products, which help explain why AUO successfully increased its TV panel market share rapidly in just a short few years. By gradually implementing these leading technologies into its products, especially the overall implementation upgrade to 37" from 32", AUO hopes to help more customers to enjoy better image quality in larger sized LCD TVs. On top of that, AUO's 37" LCD TV panels provide both WXGA (1366x768) and Full HDTV (1920x1080) specifications to fulfill the diverse needs of the widest range of customers.