Mini-LED TVs Expected to Emerge as Focus of Competition among Global TV Giants in 2021

Mini-LED TVs are likely to be the main focus of competition among global TV manufacturers in 2021. With Chinese companies already producing mini-LED TVs, Samsung Electronics and LG Electronics are expected to enter the segment in earnest next year.

In 2020, global LED panel sales were estimated at US$15,127 million, down 10 percent from 2019, said market research company TrendForce on Dec. 24. However, global sales of LED panels are expected to climb 3.8 percent in 2021 from 2020 due to pent-up demand.

Although recoveries will take shape differently product by product in the LED market in 2021, the market for mini LED backlight units (BLUs) will grow a whopping 900 percent compared to 2020, TrendForce predicted. Global electronics companies already announced that they will release new products based on BLUs in 2021. "A variety of new products will be released, including those from major companies such as Samsung and Apple, fueling demand a great deal," TrendForce explained

Starting with China's TCL's introduction of the world's first TV using Mini LED panels in 2019, Chinese budget TV makers are betting their futures on Mini LED TVs. In addition, Samsung Electronics, the first ranker in the global TV market, threw its hat in the ring and LG Electronics took the wraps off Mini LED TV models at CES in early this year, signaling a full-fledged competition.

"The Mini LED TV market will grow by double digits every year starting with 1.71 million units in 2021," said Stone Partners, a market research company, in a report. "The figure will hit seven million-plus units in 2024."

Industry insiders are predicting that there will be an increase in the number of mini LED TV lineups including high-end models. "Mini LEDs are the most appropriate to satisfy consumers, such as large screens, high definition, and appropriate price ranges," an industry source said. "Samsung Electronics is likely to focus on the most luxurious models."

"Obviously Mini LED panels and TVs are a big step in the evolution of technology," Stone Partners said. "Within two to three years, an era of mini LED BLUs will arrive.”