The rapid development of Mini LED direct-view display and backlight technology in recent years is inseparable from the continuous investment and exploration of domestic LED companies in technological innovation and market expansion. As an important driver in this field, Hongli Zhihui has been actively laying the groundwork since 2019, establishing the subsidiary Hongli Display, and taking the lead in the Mini LED industry, experiencing several ups and downs from technological breakthroughs to market stability.
From its early focus on small-to-medium-sized Mini LED backlight packaging for VR, notebooks, and automotive applications to its subsequent development of medium-to-large-sized technologies for MNTs and TVs, Hongli has gradually established a competitive advantage in the Mini LED backlight field through continuous technological accumulation and innovation. Hongli's Mini LED direct-view products have undergone more than four generations of product innovation and technological upgrades since the industry's inception, accumulating experience from product design to stable mass production.
At the 2025 TrendForce New Display Industry Seminar, Hongli Display delivered a keynote speech entitled "Innovative Technologies and Solutions for Mini LED Direct Display and Backlighting," further showcasing the company's innovative achievements at the forefront of Mini LED technology and providing strong support for the popularization and application of Mini LED technology.
Mini LED technology has broad market prospects.
Mini LED technology has sparked a significant display revolution globally, particularly in backlighting and direct-view displays. Its applications have expanded from consumer electronics to include automotive, VR, and commercial displays, among others.
Backlighting: Mini LED TVs have seen steady growth in recent years, becoming a recognized technology and continuing to grow in the market. Especially in the large-screen TV sector, with supportive national policies, Mini LED technology has made significant progress. According to TrendForce's forecast, the Mini LED market for TV applications will see substantial growth in Mini TV shipments over the next four years, expected to reach US$486 million in 2028, with a CAGR of 31% from 2023 to 2028.
In addition, VR display applications are gradually maturing. Although the overall industry has not yet experienced a large-scale boom, the growth prospects of the VR device market are still promising with the release of products such as Apple Vision Pro and PICO.
In the automotive display sector: With the rise of large-screen, intelligent, and new energy vehicles, the application of Mini LED technology in automotive applications has developed rapidly. The adoption of Mini LED technology in vehicles from Tesla, Mercedes-Benz, and BYD will further drive its application in automotive displays. According to TrendForce analysis, with the widespread acceptance of Mini LED backlighting technology by major automakers, the penetration rate of Mini LED backlighting in the automotive field is expected to reach 6% by 2028, meaning shipments will reach 15 million units, approximately a tenfold increase compared to 2024.
In the direct-view display field: Mini LED direct-view display technology, especially miniaturized COB technology, is rapidly emerging. In the first half of 2024, the market share of COB packaging increased significantly, reaching 21.4%, a year-on-year increase of 11.7%. Particularly in products with a pitch of less than P1.0, COB sales accounted for 57%, driving the development of micro-pitch display technology. In the future, with technological advancements and cost reductions, Mini LED will develop towards smaller, more precise, and more efficient designs to meet the demands of high-end displays.
In conclusion, Mini LED technology has broad market prospects, especially in the fields of television, automotive, and direct-view displays. Although it currently faces certain technical verification and development challenges, as the technology matures and application scenarios expand, Mini LED will continue to grow in multiple industrial sectors, demonstrating strong market momentum.
Deeply rooted in Mini LED technology, Hongli Display drives cost optimization and product innovation . Regarding backlight technology:
Hongli Display began its Mini LED strategy in 2019 and has been deeply involved in the field for six years, developing both COB and POB process technologies and possessing the capability to cover a full range of product sizes from VR to TV. In terms of technology, manufacturing, and quality control, the company continuously drives innovation, striving to reduce costs and improve product performance to meet diverse market demands.
Returning to the essence of packaging, in terms of fundamental technological innovation: developing microstructure designs for small and medium-sized products, and increasing the light emission angle and brightness uniformity of LEDs by achieving diverse structural designs on the encapsulant surface, thereby reducing the number of chips on the same board and effectively reducing costs. Furthermore, for medium and large-sized products, using concave and convex cup lens packaging methods, and optimizing light paths and light mixing effects to improve display performance, reduce the use of LED chips, and further reduce costs.
In its Mini LED TV product planning, Hongli Display has proposed three Mini LED solutions:
The first option is the OB blue light board + QD high-end TV solution, which is suitable for high-end models and supports flexible selection of the number of partitions from OD0 to OD24.
The second solution, COB blue light dual-lamp board + QD TV, optimizes the board utilization rate for projects with OD12 and above, reducing costs by 30% to 40%.
The third option is a large-size COB blue light strip + QD TV solution, which focuses on cost reduction, with an overall cost 60% lower than that of a complete light panel. The company has completed a fully automated 1.2m production line and will soon expand production on a large scale.
Direct-to-display products target the following segments: Hongli's standard "Hongping" series features an ultra-thin and lightweight design, high contrast, and a matte black finish. Hongli's flagship "Hongyi" series boasts a large module design and LVDS signal transmission, while retaining the advantages of the "Hongping" series, further enhancing Hongli's market competitiveness in direct-to-display products. In addition, the latest semi-outdoor/outdoor COB products are in mass production, providing comprehensive product coverage to meet the needs of various display fields.
In terms of Mini LED backlight manufacturing and quality assurance: Since 2019, Hongli Display has been building production lines ranging from small to medium and large sizes, covering the production needs of various Mini LED backlight products from VR and notebooks to TVs. It also possesses over 30 professional inspection equipment for the entire process, from incoming materials and manufacturing to shipment, along with a complete analysis and testing laboratory, an independent production park, and a Class 1000 cleanroom, ensuring the technical and mass production capabilities of its products.
Strengthening its Mini/Micro LED business layout, driving new industry growth through dual technologies . In 2024, Hongli Zhihui Group clearly proposed a "one body, two wings" industrial development strategy: focusing on LED semiconductor packaging as its core business, while simultaneously promoting automotive lighting and electronics, and Mini/Micro LED displays as two major growth engines. Guided by this strategy, Hongli Zhihui is accelerating technological breakthroughs, continuously enhancing its competitiveness in the global market by increasing market share and industry influence.
Hongli Display, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Hongli Zhihui, has experienced rapid growth in recent years. In 2023, Hongli Display completed the construction of its new 100-acre industrial park and officially moved in, significantly expanding its production of Mini LED direct-view products. Simultaneously, it established a joint laboratory with South China University of Technology in the Micro LED field and launched its P0.4 Micro LED product in 2022. In the automotive sector, it also established a joint laboratory with Marelli to promote the application of Mini LED in automotive displays, achieving mass production in 2024.
Hongli Display leverages Mini LED and Micro LED technologies to promote the widespread adoption and development of Mini LED direct-view, automotive, and backlit display technologies. Hongli Display will continue to deepen its expertise in Mini LED technology, collaborating with partners to drive industry technology upgrades and innovation, creating a new future for the display industry, and building a globally leading display technology platform. (Text: Mia)
