JDI "Full Active" LCD Panel Has Nearly No Bezels

Although it seems that even Apple is getting into OLEDs soon, there was a time when the holy grail of mobile displays wasn't exactly about LCD versus OLED technologies. It was about banishing those wide bezels. JDI, one of the leading LCD manufacturers, hasn't lost sight of that goal yet. In fact, it has just announced a new 5.5-inch Full HD LCD display module that utilizes the company's new "Full Active" technology, practically removing bezels on all sides, even on the bottom edge.

They say form follows, or should follow, function and screen bezels do exactly that, though not always in a good way. Those bezels aren't for show but are used to place and hide the electronics critical in making the display work, especially things like touch controller.

Over the years, display makers have been able to significantly reduce bezels on all of the screen's sides save one: the bottom side. With top, left, and right bezels practically gone, only the bottom is left to house such circuitry. JDI's solution wasn't to simply relocate the problem but to make them smaller.

Thanks to a new, denser wiring layout and new assembly technologies, JDI was able to reduce the bottom bezel to almost the same width of the other three sides. What this means in theory is that smartphones can be as small as its display. Of course, in practice, that will hardly be completely possible, especially if you add front-facing speakers, cameras and sensors, and even a home button on the front. Still, it could significantly reduce the size nonetheless, especially if you do relocate some of those to other sides and faces of the device.

JDI plans to start mass producing this new type of LCD display by the end of March next year, so it will still take time before we actually see them on smartphones. Provided OEMs adopt it that soon. JDI also says that it will be making other such "Full Active" panels for more than just smartphones, which perhaps implies it could come to tablets as well.

SOURCE: Japan Display Inc.