Synaptics Local Dimming SmartBridge SP7900 at Display Week 2024: Best Automotive LCD Display

At Display Week 2024, Vishal Shah, Senior Director of Product Marketing for Automotive and Displays at Synaptics, introduced their latest innovation in automotive display technology, the SmartBridge SP 7900. This new product leverages local dimming technology to deliver deep blacks and high contrast ratios akin to OLED screens, despite being an LCD. The SmartBridge SP 7900 offers significant power savings by dynamically controlling an array of LED backlights based on the content displayed. This feature is particularly beneficial for nighttime driving, where excessively bright screens can be distracting. The technology allows the display to adjust its brightness in response to ambient light conditions while maintaining vivid visuals and conserving power by reducing backlight strength.

Shah demonstrated the SP 7900's capabilities through a series of tests, showcasing its local dimming functionality. In auto-run mode, the demo alternated between local dimming on and off states and provided side-by-side comparisons. A unique feature of the SP 7900 is its backlight display mode, which illustrates how only the LEDs corresponding to active image content are illuminated, enhancing power efficiency and contrast. This demo highlighted the stark differences in performance between local dimming and non-local dimming modes, with the former offering deeper blacks and superior contrast, thus improving overall display quality.

The SmartBridge SP 7900's ability to reach peak brightness levels as high as 2000 nits, or potentially even higher with appropriate backlight support, was emphasized. This high brightness capability is crucial for ensuring screen visibility in bright sunlight conditions, while the technology also excels in dimming the display effectively during nighttime or low-light situations, where OLED screens typically fall short. Shah highlighted that users can manually toggle local dimming to observe its impact on screen visuals, demonstrating how different portions of the backlight respond to varying content, such as fireworks, enhancing the understanding of local dimming technology.

A significant advantage of Synaptics' local dimming technology is its ability to deliver high image performance with a lower number of dimming zones, resulting in cost savings without compromising quality. This efficiency is achieved through advanced image processing techniques and AI-based algorithms that optimize dimming operations in real-time, ensuring minimal latency and high responsiveness. Unlike competitors who rely heavily on software implementations, Synaptics' hardware-based approach allows for instantaneous adjustments, making it suitable for dynamic automotive environments.

Synaptics' local dimming technology, although initially targeted at the automotive market, has broader applications. Shah noted its potential use in VR displays, which predominantly utilize LCD screens, as well as in mobile phones, although the latter market is shifting towards OLED technology. For televisions, especially large models like those from Samsung's QLED lineup, local dimming remains relevant, though typically at a less granular level due to cost considerations. In automotive applications, where high-resolution and detailed user interfaces are common, Synaptics' technology offers significant performance advantages.

As the automotive industry evolves towards more advanced displays, including those in robotaxis, the demand for high-performance screens capable of delivering excellent visuals in varying lighting conditions is growing. Shah suggested that the increasing number of displays within vehicles, such as passenger screens for entertainment or rear-seat displays, will benefit greatly from local dimming technology. The ability to adjust brightness and contrast dynamically enhances the viewing experience, whether in bright sunlight or dimly lit environments.

Synaptics' SmartBridge SP 7900 supports up to 4,000 LEDs, allowing for extremely fine control over display illumination. This level of control ensures high performance even in smaller displays, like a 12-inch screen used in the demo, and can scale to much larger automotive displays up to 50 inches or more. Shah emphasized that Synaptics' technology outperforms competitors by implementing local dimming at the hardware level, avoiding the latency and image artifacts often associated with software-based solutions

Thanks to Synaptics for being my Display Week 2024 video coverage sponsor. Watch all my Synaptics videos here https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0uBWbwgkHnw&list=PL7xXqJFxvYvhAbQoe9YN4c84SqXxIY3fQ&index=2

Watch all my videos from the Display Week 2024 here: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL7xXqJFxvYvjJihFUMIabPjjPrALb6a7Z

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