TrendForce: Gaming LCD monitor shipments reached 8.5 million units in 2019

According to the latest survey by TrendForce’s Optoelectronics Research Center (WitsView), the shipment volume of gaming LCD monitors (defined by WitsView as monitors with a refresh rate of 100Hz or above) is expected to reach 8.5 million units in 2019, a 57% increase from 2018. With the increasing variety of gaming panel supply and brand development models, the growth momentum will continue in the next few years, and the shipment volume is expected to reach 11-12 million units in 2020.

TrendForce Senior Research Manager Wang Jingyi said that the number of gaming panel suppliers continued to increase in 2019. In addition to the original Samsung Display (SDC), LG Display (LGD), AUO, Innolux and BOE, CSOT and CEC Panda also entered the supply chain in 2019. The increase in suppliers also means an increase in the supply of gaming panels, making the price more affordable, which is conducive to the popularization of products.

In terms of panel LCD types, driven by the curved gaming trend in 2019, the share of VA increased significantly, while IPS gradually emerged in the gaming monitor field due to the introduction of fast LCD technology and improved response speed. With the gradual launch of IPS fast LCD panel products, it is expected that the penetration rate of IPS will increase from 10% in 2019 to 15-20% in 2020.

From the perspective of gaming monitor products, curved gaming LCD monitors began to emerge in 2018 due to their high cost-performance ratio. In 2019, brands such as AOC/Philips, Samsung, and MSI actively expanded the gaming market with curved products, pushing the proportion of curved gaming monitors to nearly 60% of the total gaming monitors. This also successfully led to a significant increase in the gaming shipments of these three brands in 2019. Among them, MSI continued to expand its medium and large-sized and diversified product lines in order to maintain a high growth momentum in 2020.

In addition to the continued growth in shipments, quality improvement is also the development focus of each panel manufacturer and brand manufacturer. For example, the current minimum curvature of curved gaming monitors is 1500R, and 1000R products will be launched in 2020. Among the brands, MSI and Samsung are particularly active and are expected to exhibit related products at CES 2020. In addition, various brands are also actively deploying high-end gaming products. For example, Dell has taken the lead in launching OLED gaming products, while Asus and Acer have focused on Mini LED gaming monitors, and HP, Asus and Acer have launched super-large-size gaming products. The development and market acceptance of high-end gaming products is also one of the key points to observe in the future.