Barco's video wall display solutions are always the highest quality available on the market. Available in different technologies (LCD, LED rear-projection and RGB laser rear-projection), sizes and resolutions, our portfolio always contains the perfect solution for your application. Our dedicated software and a range of professional services make sure you get the most out of your video wall.

LCD video walls

Narrow-bezel or bezel-less LCD displays for tiled video wall applications.

LCD
video walls

LED video walls

High-resolution indoor direct-view LED displays for maximum impact.

Direct-view LED
video walls

Rear-projection cubes

Best-in-class RPCs for critical applications.

Rear-projection
cubes

Video wall controllers

Networked controllers to distribute and display any source onto any display.

Video wall
controllers

What is a video wall?

A video wall (also known as display wall) is a large visualization surface consisting of multiple displays. Originally, they consisted of multiple televisions or monitors that were put closely together. The objective was to make it seem as one large display surface. The problem however was the large frame (or bezel) that surrounded the useful display surface of each television. This completely tore down the effect of a single canvas and ruined the visual performance. Therefore, new technologies were introduced to minimize the ‘dead pixel space’ between the different displays. Today’s display wall solutions are generally using tiled LCD panels, rear-projection cubes, or direct LED tiles.

These display walls are available in a wide range of sizes, typically with a screen diameter between 46” and 80”. The choice of the screen size depends on the typical content and the viewing distance. If watched from up close, the pixel density should be high enough to not see the individual pixels. The resolution is subject to the wall size. For example, a 4K video wall requires 4 Full HD screens in a 2 x 2 setup.

Typical application areas include control rooms, meeting rooms, digital signage and other demanding environments.

Although these different technologies have very distinct merits, answering specific needs of users, they have a number of things in common. They all:

• Need a video wall controller to get content on the screens
• Are very flexible regarding size (number of individual displays)
• Need a calibration mechanism to ensure that all individual tiles have the same brightness and color settings. Barco’s automatic calibration technology does this in real-time, both calibrating single displays and entire walls
• Require a minimal inter-tile gap (or ultra narrow bezel) to counter the ‘raster effect'

LCD video walls

An LCD video wall consists of multiple specifically designed LCD displays. Contrary to the panels used in television sets, these LCD displays have a very narrow bezel. This minimizes the gap between the panels, making it look like one big canvas. Over the years, this gap has gradually decreased. Today, Barco UniSee has the smallest gap in the industry.

LCD video walls are designed for long term and intensive use, often playing in a 24/7 mode — which means they are rarely switched off. Specific measures to prevent burn-in effects are applied to allow them to play for many years, in optimal conditions.

The traditional benefits of LCD video wall solutions include the high brightness, good image quality, and relatively low cost. Also the limited real estate space needed is a plus. The disadvantages are the risk for burn-in and the lower lifetime. Recent models however have successfully reduced these drawbacks.

Typical markets for LCD display walls include meeting and crisis rooms, lobbies, and experience centers. You can also find them in the control rooms of traffic and security centers.

LED video walls

Direct-view LED technology is used to create the most impressive video walls. They are very bright and are often not only used to inform or to collaborate, but also to wow audiences. For example in retail & advertisement settings, during spectacles or live performances, LED video walls are used. Due to recent price-drops for LED video walls, they have become in reach of most corporations, to use in control rooms or corporate lobbies. The LED display tiles consist of many individual color LEDs. The pixel pitch can be quite large when they are watched from afar (for live performances for example), or very small (for control rooms or lobbies.

The high brightness, absence of inter-tile gaps and impressive colors are the main benefits of direct-view LED technology. Also the limited depth and weight can be important in certain settings.

Rear-projection video walls

Using projection instead of LCD or direct-view LED technology, rear-projection video walls target different applications. They are mainly used in control rooms that operate in a 24/7 mode. Utilities providers, for example, generally rely on rear-projection technology to monitor their network.

A rear-projection video wall consists of multiple cubes, which feature a projector and a screen. The projectors are positioned upwards. A mirror under a 45° angle then reflects the image and casts it onto the projection screen. In this way, the required depth is cut dramatically. For example, Barco’s OverView ODLF series only requires a depth of 60 cm/23.6”. This advanced video wall can also be serviced from the front, so there is no need for a rear maintenance area.

The benefits of this technology include the very high lifetime, the absence of burn-in effects, and the narrow gap between cubes.

Factors determining the video wall price

The cost is a main contributor to the selection of your video wall solution. Many factors need to be taken into account when calculating the cost of your video wall. Here are the main ones:

• Technology: There are 3 main video wall technologies (described above), all with their specific benefits AND price tag. Historically, ultra narrow bezel LCD is the most economic option, followed by rear-projection cubes and direct-view LED displays. Price erosion on narrow pixel pitch LED video walls in recent years has brought this technology within reach of all corporations, so that new markets (including control rooms, corporate lobbies, television studios, etc.) can also benefit from LED.
• Size: The cool thing about video walls is that they are modular, so they really take the size and aspect ratio you want. But it should be no surprise that large video walls cost more than small ones. Not only the price of the panels raises the costs: large video walls also need more driving controllers and processing power to handle the high resolution. This is a significant extra cost that should not be overlooked!
• Support: The more panels, the heavier the video wall system becomes. This poses additional requirements on the supporting infrastructure. The heaviest load for rear-projection walls is on the floor, which is only rarely an issue. For LED walls and LCD video walls, on the other hand, it is the supporting wall that catches the full load. It may need some additional support to handle the pressure.
• Total cost of ownership (TCO): The initial investment is of course the most visible cost, but don't forget to calculate the operating costs as well. This includes the cost for electricity and consumables (like cooling fans and color wheels). Barco's video wall displays are built to be as cost-effective as possible, with as few moving parts (that are susceptible to wear) as possible.
• Service and repair costs: Even high-quality video walls can have unlikely issues. This can be minor or severe, but there is always a cost. For the financial department, cost predictability is very important. That is why Barco offers a number of comprehensive service packages, ensuring minimal downtime at a fixed cost.