Digital Signage – What Screen?

Digital signage is an expanding medium. More and more screens are being installed in shopping malls, transport hubs and even outdoor locations. Essentially, digital signage is the use out of the home of modern TV devices such as LCD or plasma screens, used for displaying advertising, branding or information content to an out of home audience.

The screens used for digital signage are essentially the same as those used around the home, but with the technology advancing with the introduction of LED backlights and an increased preference for LCD over plasma, what type of screen is best for digital signage?

Digital signage screens have higher demands than home TVs. Most digital signage displays are left on 24-hours a day and are often in environments with variable temperatures. Commercial grade screens are often preferred for digital signage as they are better suited for long-term use.

Commercial grade screens come as both plasma and LCD varieties and both systems are suitable for digital signage. The big difference with plasma and LCD is the requirement of a backlight. Plasma screens produce their own illumination while and LCD screen require a form of backlight.

Most of an LCD screens power usage goes into this backlighting, but to save power, modern LED backlights are becoming increasingly common. LED backlit LCD screens use less power than conventional backlit systems, which is both good for the environment and good for saving money on running costs.

Outdoor Digital Signage

With outdoor screens, brightness is the most important factor of a screen (and of course protection from the elements, but an LCD enclosure can provide that). Plasmas have a higher brightness level than LCDs but even this is often not good enough to cope with bright sunlight.

High brightness screens are now more readily available and are designed specifically for coping with bright sunshine, and in many outdoor locations they are essential.