Samsung Display Circular OLED to Be Featured in BMW 'Mini'

Exhibition at 'The New Mini Family' Launch Event on the 13th
Supply of 9.4-inch Circular Displays for 5 New Car Models

Samsung's circular organic light-emitting diode (OLED) will be installed in MINI, the small car brand under the BMW Group.

A 15.7-inch in-vehicle information display (CID) showcased by Samsung Display at the Society for Information Display (SID) academic event "Display Week 2023" held in May last year.
[Photo by Samsung Display Newsroom]

Samsung Display announced on the 13th that it exhibited the industry's first circular OLED for vehicle information display (CID) at the 'The New MINI Family' launch event held at S Factory in Seongsu-dong, Seoul. They also revealed behind-the-scenes stories related to the development of the circular panel.

The event was held to celebrate the launch of five new models, including two pure electric MINI models: the New All-Electric MINI Cooper and the New All-Electric MINI Countryman. Samsung Display is exclusively supplying circular OLEDs for all five models.

Samsung Display separately exhibited the 9.4-inch diameter circular OLED panel installed in the new cars. They showcased the circular design symbolizing MINI's identity and the differentiated image quality of Samsung OLED, which is well-suited for CID use.

Additionally, Lim Ji-su, a professional from the Small and Medium Business Division Marketing Team, took the stage to share behind-the-scenes stories of the four-year development process of the circular OLED for CID, which began in January 2020. Lim explained, "A circular display is not made by simply cutting a rectangular panel into a circle. We had to redesign approximately 11 million pixels and tens of thousands of circuits to fit the circular shape and develop new components."

Samsung Display was the first in the world to develop circular displays for watches and secured precise round shaping technology by applying 'hole display' (a technology that creates a hole at the top of the screen to mount a camera module) to smartphones. Collaborating with MINI for several years, they developed the 'one-chip DDI' and completed a CID panel with a special design desired by customers. Both companies cooperated from the initial idea proposal to development to implement a screen optimized for the circular display.

Lim said, "The circular display for vehicles is an innovative attempt that breaks the stereotype of traditional rectangular CID designs. The circular display for CID, which embodies Samsung OLED technology, will provide a user experience that is on a different level from existing displays in terms of image quality, safety, and eco-friendliness."

Samsung Display and MINI have been conducting joint marketing at various events such as 'Gamescom 2023' and 'IAA 2023' held in Germany last year, and the recent 'MINI Heritage & Beyond' exhibition held in Korea.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.