Corning Scores Iris Glass TV Design Win With Chinese Brand LeTV

Corning scored its first TV design win in China for the Iris glass-based light-guide plate technology it introduced at CES a year ago (see 1501090015), it said in a Tuesday announcement. Chinese brand LeTV is using Iris in its 70-inch TV called the Super TV Max 70, Corning said. Iris “is a key component for edge-lit technology because it distributes and directs light through the front of the TV, enabling vibrant pictures,” Corning said. “Historically, display designers have used plastic light-guide plates, which are highly susceptible to heat and humidity,” Corning said. “This leads to design trade-offs resulting in thicker sets and wider bezels.” Alternatively, Iris “not only becomes a third piece of glass in the TV design, but it also eliminates design compromises by offering optically pure glass, which is both dimensionally and thermally stable,” it said. “This enables brands and designers to achieve significantly thinner sets and bezels than were previously attainable using plastic.” Corning has said Iris-glass-based light-guide plates are 36 times stronger than acrylic and can enable TV set designs that are less than 5 mm thick (0.2 inches) at their thinnest point, making for a key competitive weapon for LCD TV in its battle against OLED.