Opinion: The death of the video monitor-wall has arrived!

15-20 years ago when DPS first deployed multi screen video walls for commercial advertising they were the only way to create high resolution large format digital displays… just like typewriters, pagers and fax machines old gives way to new and the display technology for large video walls has also moved on….

The world has changed.

  • Content being displayed with seams at display edges is no longer acceptable or consistent with high definition content requirements, and
  • The latest in fine pitch LED technology is now price competitive with LCD video monitor walls.

While the investment in a monitor-wall may look low cost at the surface, and could be a great sales pitch, it’s like offering a 4:3 Analogue TV in a world of slimline 16:9 Digital TV. That’s not the way DPS operates.

Looking at the Technology environment

  • Like all technology, Digital display technology is continually experiencing evolutionary change
  • However big technology leaps also come along that fundamentally move the product capability and product structure, even if the primary use remains the same i.e. Fixed-line phone, moves to Mobile phone, moves to Smart phone
  • Display technology has experienced similar leaps over the last four decades – Large Format Projection, Multi-screen Walls (with bezels), and now Fine Resolution LED (bezel free) Walls
  • Choosing a multi-screen wall may appear to save initial capital cost however to preserve the wall over its short useful life (3 to 4 years) will add additional cost to secure matching spares up front
  • But understanding the true cost of a commercial multi-screen uncovers a total project cost not much less than new generation LED, except the LED will outlast the multi-screen by 2.5 times, provide better images and use less power
  • If your need is for the long term, then an LED solution is the best outcome with latest technology, up to a 10 year life cycle and importantly a totally bezel free image to showcase your hi-resolution content
  • It’s not surprising International manufacturers are announcing limited future supply and support for their monitor products

Looking at the Content implications

  • 20 years ago when there was no choice, having horizontal and vertical bezel lines running through content was accepted – the total display area being made up of many displays
  • Bezel thickness has evolved over the decades reducing the content interference – but the unsightly bezel lines and the brightness variations at the edges remain visible
  • As a monitor wall is made up of individual displays the natural individual aging creates colour mis-match within months of installation adversely impacting the content quality
  • High quality content was designed and produced to be displayed cleanly, not through a matrix of bezel lines
  • LED displays are designed and manufactured as a single display solution and totally bezel free
  • Content is displayed as it was intended on a LED display
  • As LED development has evolved to very fine pixel pitch options a current generation LED can display content as it was intended – bezel free and in HD – and now in 2020 with competitive pricing

Even Slim Bezels are Obvious – Colour Mismatch Emerges Quickly after Installation

 

 

 

 

 

Alternatively a LED display is a single display, bezel free, displaying consistent image and colour across the entire face.

DPS understands every client’s circumstance will be different. Our aim is to ensure the content and life-cycle implications are understood and decisions are made with the full picture upfront – Contact DPS to Discuss

Comparing Video Wall vs LED Wall attributes highlights the transition over the last 2 decades.

In 2000 a monitor based video wall was new, spectacular and relevant.

But now in 2020 the technology has moved dramatically.

Best Fit Selection ChecklistNote: SMD (Surface Mounted LED), COB (Chip on Board LED)

Contact DPS to Discuss