World's First Mass Production of Transparent PI Film... First Entry into the Medium-to-Large Display Market
[Asia Economy Reporter Hwang Yoon-joo] Kolon Industries is aiming to secure a leading position in the medium-to-large foldable display market beyond mobile phones.
Kolon Industries announced on the 5th that its transparent polyimide (PI) film, CPI® film, was used as the cover window for the Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Fold (X1 Fold), the world's first foldable laptop released by global PC manufacturer Lenovo.
The X1 Fold, equipped with Kolon Industries' CPI® film which succeeded in the world's first mass production, is a premium foldable laptop with a 13.3-inch screen that can be easily folded and unfolded. Until now, transparent PI films have mainly been applied to foldable phones, and this is the first time they have been used in medium-to-large foldable displays such as laptops. Notably, the world's first touch pen technology, which is difficult to apply to thin glass cover windows, was applied. The X1 Fold was first introduced to the North American market at the end of last year and has been sold domestically since February.
CPI® film is a core material used as a cover window for foldable displays because it is as transparent as glass and does not scratch even after hundreds of thousands of folds. In particular, CPI® film has advantages over other materials in terms of durability against temperature changes and long-term use, and it can be freely applied to various sizes and designs of form factors. Since successfully mass-producing CPI® film for the first time in the world in 2019, Kolon Industries has supplied CPI® film to numerous global display companies, and CPI® film is currently used in various foldable phones.
Display market research firm DSCC stated in its 2020 market research report that the foldable display market is expanding from small phones to medium-to-large markets such as tablets and laptops, and is expected to maintain an average annual growth rate of about 131% over the next four years. Especially when foldable displays are applied to medium-to-large products over 10 inches, such as tablets or laptops, the volume is reduced when folded, making them very portable, so demand for medium-to-large foldable displays is expected to continue increasing.
Kolon Industries plans to expand its business area with new form factors, using the application of the X1 Fold laptop as a stepping stone. Since the CPI® film used in this X1 Fold was supplied to Lenovo in collaboration with LG Display, the company plans to build close cooperative systems with global display companies in the future and develop and supply optimized materials for various form factors including medium, large, and rollable displays.
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