The seven traps you must avoid when buying LCDs

The seven traps you must avoid when buying LCDs

The selling price of any product largely depends on the cost. Effective cost reduction is the most effective way to increase profits. Therefore, it is easy to cut corners in the cost link in various products, and LCD monitors are of course no exception. For seemingly similar products, there is a gap of hundreds or even thousands of dollars between different models of different manufacturers. The reason is the difference in cost.

1. Panel level is the easiest to cut cost

Seventy percent of the cost of an LCD monitor comes from the LCD panel. The LCD panel is the core component of the LCD monitor. Of course, it is also the part that is most likely to cut corners.

First of all, there are differences in the performance of LCD panels. There are popular LCD panels with more general performance, and there are high-quality panels with high-contrast optical viewing angles. Whether the performance of LCD monitors is good or bad is basically determined by what panel is selected. Unscrupulous companies are likely to shoddy and bluff some products with lower performance into products with superior performance to raise their prices. Such products can be easily distinguished only by carefully checking the information and figuring out the true performance of the product.

In addition, LCD panels with the same performance are classified as different grades when they leave the factory, and the prices of different grades of panels are of course different. To reduce costs, you only need to order lower grade panels. It is difficult to distinguish the grade of the panel from the appearance of the panel, so it is difficult to see the difference from the appearance of various panels after they are assembled into products.

To distinguish the grade of the panel, it mainly depends on the number of dead pixels of the panel. The fewer the number of dead pixels, the higher the grade of the panel that promises no bright spots. Secondly, the high-grade panel itself has little light leakage, and there are no other problems such as color spots and color blocks. Low-grade panels have more or less defects, such as more dead pixels, or stains, and severe light leakage. In other words, this kind of grading is actually distinguished by selection when the panels leave the factory. Good-quality products have higher grades and correspondingly higher prices. Otherwise, low-grade or even defective products have lower prices. This classification standard is widely used in IT product accessories.

In fact, many LCD giants do not specially customize proprietary LCD panels, but also purchase them from panel manufacturers like other second- and third-tier manufacturers. However, such manufacturers often pay great attention to the selection of panels, and often select a small part of a batch of products from LCD panel manufacturers. Of course, these high-quality products are of higher quality than other products, and the cost is higher, and the price is more expensive. understand.

Manufacturers are actually quite aware of the quality of the panels they use. Sometimes an agent will tell their subordinate dealers to sell a certain batch of products first. Because the panels are of poor quality, they are prone to problems such as dead pixels and dark spots. Of course, the sooner you sell it, the better. If the quality of the panel is good, the manufacturer may temporarily implement a checkpoint policy for a certain batch of products, because the manufacturer understands that the quality of this batch of products is good, and the repair rate will not be high.

2. The tricks are hidden in the packaging of liquid crystal products

Don’t think that the outer packaging of the product is as simple as a box. The outer packaging of the product involves many issues such as safety and environmental protection.

Outer packaging is also a very important part of the industrialized products produced by the company, and the cost is not low. Don’t you see that discarded packaging boxes can be sold for a few cents a catty, and many people are vying for it?

The better outer packaging of LCD monitors is usually thicker to ensure that it will not be damaged during transportation. Its raw materials are usually recyclable and environmentally friendly materials, and the signs of recycled materials can generally be found on the outer packaging. In the printing of the outer packaging, manufacturers who pay more attention usually print the appearance of the built-in display, and provide as much information as possible such as the display, such as model, size, weight, general performance introduction, etc. These printed texts are also a cost. Of course, the less you print, the lower the cost. Manufacturers who pay more attention will also pay attention to the beauty of the outer packaging, and the printed content will even include information such as pictures, which is very delicate. Manufacturers who cut corners on the outer packaging generally try to simplify these things as much as possible. One outer packaging can be used for multiple products with similar specifications.

In addition to the packaging itself, the filling materials inside cannot be ignored. Common materials are recycled paper and foam plastics. Recycled paper is more expensive, and it can usually be seen on high-end monitors, while foam is very popular, because it is a by-product of petroleum, so the price is very cheap.

3. The functions of LCD products can also shrink

Familiar friends know that there is an unwritten rule in the field of LCD monitors. An LCD monitor is usually available in two models with DVI interface and without DVI interface, while other specifications are almost the same, and of course the price is also different. This is the most direct example of simplifying functions and reducing costs. Of course, there are other means of omitting built-in speakers, microphones, and USB ports.

This functional simplification can effectively reduce the cost without reducing most of the performance of the LCD display. The “shrunk” version of the product does not need to be designed separately, and can be produced directly by adopting the “original” product plan, which simply enriches the product line, making the two products of the same family meet the needs of more people and conform to market rules.

In fact, this kind of “cutting corners” can be regarded as a normal method, and it is not necessary as a phenomenon that is deeply hated. We cite this example not to ask everyone to choose a product with complete functions. If this function is meaningless to you Of course, it is wiser to buy “shrunk” products.

4. The accessories of LCD products are indispensable

The attachment is another part of the liquid crystal display that is very straightforward and can cut corners. Common liquid crystal displays include cables, CDs, manuals, and related installation accessories. Any deduction or reduction in quality can reduce costs.

The most common example is that a dual-interface monitor that should be equipped with two cables, DVI and VGA, can save part of the cost by deducting the DVI cable. With the popularity of DVI, many entry-level monitors also have this interface, but the DVI cable is usually omitted.

In addition to not giving them at all, it is also common to reduce the quality of cables. Let me talk about the VGA signal line first, this line is the easiest to see the grade. A good VGA cable is thick in diameter, flexible and elastic, and the connector part is finely crafted

Thin, no burrs. Inferior VGA cables are not only very thin, but also very brittle, and the quality of the connectors is not good. At present, the VGA cable of many low-end monitors has shrunk seriously, and the VGA cable attached to many brands is actually only a little thicker than the keyboard cable. Any machine that comes with this kind of VGA cable will definitely not be of higher grade. The situation of the DVI cable is roughly the same as that of the VGA cable.

In addition to signal cables, problems can also be seen in power cables. The material of a good thread is flexible, and the length is generally about 1.5 to 2 meters. The length of a poor thread shrinks, and the material requirements are reduced accordingly. Then, you can look at the certifications passed on the signal line interface. There are a lot of signs of good lines, such as those from the European Union, Japan, the United States, and my country’s CCC. These lines are all certified by multiple countries. Quality is definitely guaranteed. Poor wire certification representations are rare, and some are not at all. If the monitor comes with speakers or something, you should also pay attention to the cables. Good audio cables have degaussing rings, which are expensive. Ordinary, of course, no more. However, the audio cables attached to the monitors are common at present, and it is rare to see cables with degaussing rings.

The transformer is also one of the important accessories of some monitors. There is great flexibility between good quality and average quality. However, at present, many display manufacturers prefer to use built-in power supplies, so that the cost is in their own hands and can be easily controlled.

In addition to making a big fuss about the cable, the same is true for omitting the driver CD and manual. Although the cost unit price of these accessories is not high, the amount accumulated in mass-produced industrial products is still not small.

5. The product shell is prone to cutting cost

The biggest cost of an LCD monitor other than the LCD panel is the casing, which is also the link that monitor manufacturers attach the most importance to. Liquid crystal display manufacturers mostly have dedicated design and development teams for the appearance of their products. The current liquid crystal display can easily distinguish the strength of the manufacturer from the design. Large-brand LCD monitors often have unique designs in terms of appearance and shape, while small manufacturers with insufficient strength often adopt simple shape designs or imitate other excellent products. Since there is so much knowledge on the shell and so much energy invested, of course it is very easy to cut corners.

First of all, the design can be simplified as much as possible. For example: the plastic casing usually used in monitors has a smooth surface and a textured surface, and the textured surface is more expensive than the smooth surface. If the casing is designed to be smooth, the cost is naturally cheaper than the textured surface. In addition, a gradual method can also be adopted in the shape design, and only some minor adjustments are made on the original basis, so that the previous parts can be used as much as possible, and the cost is saved in this way.

Secondly, the material used for the shell can be reduced. The most common material for liquid crystal displays is plastic, and a few high-end ones use metal casings, such as AOC 174F, which is an integral steel casing, and Samsung 193P+ even uses an aluminum-magnesium alloy casing. Aside from metal shells, there are many types of plastic shells, the most important of which are different materials. Good plastic materials are environmentally friendly and fireproof, and poorer ones are not so good. Generally speaking, the minimum cost of a good-quality fire-resistant plastic casing for a display is around 200 yuan, and it will be more expensive if it has a unique shape. Not to mention the metal ones.

The last thing is to work hard on the mold. Many people may not know it, but mold expenses are actually one of the most expensive items in display manufacturing and R&D costs! Even for a display with a very simple appearance, the cost of mold opening alone is more than 1 million! A lot of maintenance is required to maintain the quality of the shell. Even a well-maintained mold has a lifespan. When it wears out to a certain extent, it can no longer be used anymore. It must cost a lot of money to make a new one. If the manufacturer intends to reduce the cost of the shell, the mold can continue to be used when it reaches the scrapping level, which can save a lot of mold opening costs, but the accuracy of the shell will be greatly affected and it will appear very rough.

6. TCO, RoHS certification, everything is simple

In order to ensure safety, environmental protection and other factors, any industrialized product has certain standards that need to be implemented, which is what we usually call certification. Only by meeting these certifications can users be assured of using them. Certification is something invisible and intangible in general commodities. Products with more certifications must have more advantages. And this almost intangible cost of just having one more icon on the display also requires manufacturers to pay a great price. Passing these certifications is not free. According to different certification agencies, the charging standards are also different, and it is expensive.

At present, my country implements CCC compulsory safety certification for display products, as long as they are not counterfeit and inferior products, they will pass this certification. The rest of the common certifications include the CE European Common Market safety mark, the JIS mark in Japan, the BEAB mark in the United Kingdom, the UL mark in the United States, the NF mark in France, and the CS mark in Germany. If the display is sold in China, it only needs to pass the CCC. If it is sold in the above-mentioned countries, it must pass the certification of the country and obtain the certification.

In addition to the safety certifications that electronic products generally must implement, monitors also have some professional certifications, such as MPR II, TCO, and the currently popular RoHS.

Among them, MPR II is about the certification of display radiation, which is a relatively basic standard, and almost all displays can meet this standard. TCO is a certification related to environmental protection, while RoHS is a certification for lead-free process production.

TCO certification is a series of strict and normative standards established by the Swedish Labor Federation for display products. Only when the five aspects of ecology, energy, radiation, ergonomics and electrical safety meet the standards set by TCO Development can they pass TCO Appropriate version of the certification. TCO is currently recognized as the most stringent certification system in the field of displays, and displays that meet this standard can provide users with maximum protection. Currently TCO has released the 06 standard.

RoHS (Restriction of Hazardous Substances, Restriction of Hazardous Substances) is an official certification of the European Union (Figure 1), and is called the most stringent environmental protection directive in the world by industry insiders. According to the relevant regulations of the RoHS certification standard, since July 1, 2006, all electronic and electrical equipment sold in the EU market must prohibit the use of lead (Pb), mercury (Hg), cadmium (Cd), hexavalent chromium (Cr6+ ), and hazardous substances such as polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDE) and polybrominated biphenyls (PBB). Of course, the influence of RoHS is not limited to Europe, the certification is gradually becoming a global standard. my country’s relevant laws and regulations have entered the “notification draft” stage, and it is believed that they will be issued and implemented soon.

It is not easy to pass these certifications. First of all, the product must be designed with strict safety certification requirements, and all aspects must not be sloppy, which will increase the production cost of the product. According to statistics, it takes about 200,000 yuan for a display to pass the certification. Although there are commissioned testing units in China, the right to issue certification is abroad. It takes about 2 months on average for the display, so the cost behind a small certification is by no means low. The long-term considerations of environmental protection and lead-free are obviously not in line with JS’s thinking, so many small factories have simplified everything except the necessary electrical safety certification.

7. Other control cost of LCD products

In addition to the aspects mentioned above, there are some “cost control” parts inside the LCD display, including the control module and power module.

The position of the control module in the liquid crystal display is equivalent to the main board in the personal computer. It realizes all the function control of the display, and the function of the power supply module is for power management. They are integrated in the form of integrated circuit boards in the liquid crystal display. Among them, there are many “cost saving” places in the integrated circuit board. The selection of materials from PCB to various electronic components can vary greatly. For example, the PCB version has the cheapest single-layer board and the more expensive multi-layer board. A good board has high safety and good integration, but the price is not cheap. Even components with the same specifications on the integrated circuit board may have different qualities, such as differences in fire resistance and durability, which will also lead to final cost differences.

In addition, the function of the control board also plays a decisive role in the cost. For example, in order to realize the response time of the gray scale, a corresponding chip must be added, and the design of the board must also be considered. Boards with more functions are more expensive than those with fewer functions. At present, the cost of a set of the simplest control panel is nearly 300 yuan, not to mention the one with many functions.

After reading these, I believe that you not only have a certain understanding of the production and components of liquid crystal displays, but choosing products with complete technology and careful consideration of materials will increase the cost, but the safety and comfort of your products can also be improved. The best guarantee. More importantly, you should learn how to distinguish the advantages and disadvantages of LCD monitors