Sharp Corp. has said it will supply Samsung Electronics Co. with energy-saving, high-performance IGZO (Indium- Gallium-Zinc Oxide) panels for laptop PCs.
It will manufacture 11.6-inch IGZO panels for Samsung at its mainstay production facility in Kameyama, Mie Prefecture, Japan, and plans to begin shipments as early as summer.
The deal is expected to help give a boost to the plant’s current 60% (approximate) operating rate. Sharp’s proprietary IGZO panels are said to consume 80-90% less power than conventional models and are highly touch- sensitive. They have been used in the company’s own smartphones and tablet devices as well as Apple Inc’s tablets.
Sharp formed a capital and operational partnership with Samsung in March and now supplies the South Korean firm with large display panels for televisions. The latest deal appears mutually beneficial: Samsung is leaning toward outsourcing LCD panels while concentrating resources on OEL display technology, while Sharp is positioning small and midsize panels as key to its rebuilding effort.