Digitimes Research has released more data regarding the LCD panel market in the fourth quarter of 2017, this time for small and medium-sized panels, which dropped by 1.1% to 314 million units, a bigger decline than originally anticipated.
Shipments of panels for smartphone applications apparently grew by 1.9% during the quarter, thanks to the burgeoning trend for 18:9, all-screen smartphones. Meanwhile, panels for tablet devices rose by 12.4% quarter-on-quarter, thanks to the release of the seventh-generation Amazon’s Fire HD Tablet 10 during the fourth quarter.
Small and medium panel shipments are expected to drop 14% to 270 million units during the first quarter of 2018, a fairly typical trend across many markets in the post-holiday season period. Panels for industry control and commercial will fall by 7.3% and consumer electronics by 7.5%, while panels for camera modules are expected to fall more sharply, at 22.8%. Tablet panels are expected to continue to grow, again due to the popularity of Amazon devices.
