Stand-alone monitors

	The 618GL from Zhangzhou Lilliput is a 7in standalone monitor with a 16:9 aspect ratio, VGA port and optional touchscreen.

Models have 7in to 10in screens and carry basic TV and viewing functions. The line’s expansion is seen to overcome lack in panels.

Unlike other types of in-car monitors that focus on multifunctionality, standalone monitors are essentially geared toward providing TV and other viewing functions via VGA inputs and built-in TV tuners. Makers of the latter also tend to produce bigger screen sizes with up to 10.4in panels.

Manufacturers in China debuted in the in-car TV industry with the release of standalone car monitors on bracket mounts in the early 1990s. Today, one third of the estimated 100 active in-car TV/monitor makers in the region produce standalone types.

These suppliers mostly concentrate on filling the overseas demand for the product, since the domestic market is still in its early days. Estimates indicate that more than 80 percent of car monitors and TVs are shipped abroad. The United States and the European Union are major export destinations.

The bulk of the output goes to OEM/ODM contracts, but leading makers have also established own brands overseas.

	Guangzhou Weier has the TV8400DVB-T standalone car monitor with a built-in DVB-T tuner and an 8in or 8.4in screen.

For expanded viewing options, makers add VGA inputs and built-in DVB-T tuners to standalone monitors.

Model 618GL from Zhangzhou Lilliput Electronics Co. Ltd is a standalone car monitor with a VGA input. It boasts a 7in screen with a 800x480 pixel resolution, 16:9 aspect ratio and optional touchscreen function.

The manufacture of standalone monitors that can receive digital television is listed as another major R&D direction for makers. Half of Guangzhou Weier Shunfa Electronic Co. Ltd’s EU exports of in-car TV/monitors are embedded with DVB-T tuners.

The TV8400DVB-T standalone car monitor is available with an 8in or 8.4in panel and 800x600 pixel resolution. The model has a built-in DVB-T tuner and can receive TV programs in vehicles at speeds of up to 120kph. It is compatible with PAL, NTSC and SECAM systems, and supports VGA input.

Another maker integrates both DVB-T and analog TV tuners into its models. Waysion Technology (Xiamen) Co. Ltd’s DT-800 hybrid model has an 8in TFT LCD. The standalone monitor with 640x480 pixel resolution features an EPG for digital TV reception, picture in graphic function, 45MHz to 860MHz analog TV reception with 99 preset channels, and VHF 174MHz to 230MHz and UHF 470MHz to 862MHz DVB-T TV reception.

There has also been progress in the design of multifunctional standalone car TVs.

Shenzhen SGDQ Co. Ltd has developed the TM-7003A, a 7in standalone monitor that supports games. The model has a full-function remote control, a built-in TV tuner, PAL/NTSC compatibility and two A/V input ports, one of which is preset for automatic reversing systems.

The quality of the TFT-LCD panel, a major component of in-car monitors/TVs, largely decides a product’s performance. AUO, Innolux and PVI are listed as top suppliers of TFT-LCD panels, although makers also source from CPT, LG.Philips, Samsung, Panasonic and Sharp.

The industry fell victim to a 2007 panel shortage. This lack was influenced by the strong demand for 7in and 8in panels from the digital photo frame industry and the recent production shift of panel makers to large-screen TV panels. Panel production expansion, however, is expected to help overcome the shortage this year.

Another major component is the TV tuner, which interviewed makers source from various domestic and Taiwan suppliers.

Entry-level standalone monitors feature PAL/NTSC and optional SECAM support, one- or two-channel composite video inputs, built-in speakers and full-function remote controls. Widescreen units can have 480x234 or 1440x234 pixel resolution for analog TFT-LCD panels and 800x480 pixel resolution for digital panels. Analog standalone monitors are priced from $55 to $65, while DVB-T units can fetch about $80.

High-end standalone car TVs/monitors integrated with VGA ports double as PC monitors in vehicles. These mostly come with touchscreen panels. Compared with entry-level models, units with VGA ports pass through much-stricter electromagnetic compatibility and EMI requirements. The prices are $15 to $25 higher than products without VGA ports.

Guangdong province’s Shenzhen, being China’s major in-car entertainment production center, is recognized as the biggest sourcing center for standalone monitors. More than 80 percent of makers in this product line come from this city. Buyers, however, can also find some suppliers in Shanghai and the coastal provinces of Fujian, Jiangsu and Liaoning.

One of China’s earliest in-car monitor makers is Zhangzhou Lilliput, which began manufacturing the products in 1995, two years after it was founded. The company’s 6,000sqm factory in Zhangzhou, Fujian, is certified under the ISO 9001:2000 standard. The factory is operated by 300 workers. The monthly capacity is 50,000 car TV/monitor sets, 80 percent of which are standalone units.

Zhangzhou Lilliput maintains a 50-staff R&D team that develops new models, including mechanical and structural design, video technology research, applications development and customization services. It has also set up R&D partnerships with several universities and institutes. One such collaboration with Zhejiang University involves embedded operation systems development. Zhangzhou Lilliput has a lead time of one to three months. Customized modifications based on current models typically take 15 working days.

Shenzhen SGDQ, which has more than 250 employees at its 5,500sqm factory in Shenzhen, entered the industry in 1998.

The manufacturer invests about 10 percent of its sales revenue on product development projects. It has 20 in-house engineers who carry out R&D activities such as software design, PCB layout, and cosmetic and structural design.

Shenzhen SGDQ can turn out 8,000 sets of car TVs/monitors, with standalone car TV/monitors accounting for 15 percent of total output.

With headquarters in Xiamen in Fujian, Waysion operates a 20,000sqm factory in Zhangzhou with 300 workers. It can turn out 6,000 sets of car monitors a month, of which 90 percent are standalone types. It pours $1 million into R&D activities annually. Ten in-house engineers based in Xiamen are into R&D with focus on mechanical and structural design, PCB layout and software development. The company is certified under the ISO 9001:2000 standard.

Guangzhou Weier has an R&D team with 60 engineers who take care of software design, cosmetic and mold design, and PCB layout. It takes 15 days to finish customization requests based on current products. Guangzhou Weier’s lead time to develop a new model with a software redesign is three months. The company employs 360 staff members at its 15,000sqm Guangzhou factory, which can produce 80,000 to 100,000 sets of car A/V products per month.