LCD Sourcing Troubles

[Lowkus]

I was looking for a 7" TFT LCD w/Touch to use in my first ever electronics project.  Because I'm planning on the project being something I eventually sell I wanted to find an LCD supplier that would do large quantity at cheap prices.  I found one on Alibaba called "Microtech Technology Company Limited" that was offering what I was looking for at a price of $25 for low-quantity orders of 1 to 99 pieces, with lower prices if I ordered more than that.  Here's where the problem begins... I contacted that company for more information and they said the price on Alibaba was "advertising" and that the REAL price to buy it is $80 per piece, or if I get a cheaper version of the LCD with lower nits and cheaper materials they'd sell those to me for $50 per piece.  I have a very low opinion of Chinese companies due to past interactions, but this company's behavior seems extra lame.  Now I have to decide if I am going to find a different supplier, or drop the LCD entirely from the project for some bland alternative, or I could simply accept that the Chinese lie as a matter of their nature and go forward with purchasing the LCD at the higher price.  I'm looking for suggestions on how to approach this, and if you know of honest and inexpensive suppliers of LCD's for mass production then I'd be interested in getting that information.  I have not yet replied to the Microtech saleswoman, I want to get some feedback here before I craft my reply.

[Rishles69@]

https://www.amazon.in/dp/B0CN3MSNKY?tag=bgms-21&ascsubtag=bing_6603d2452ddde its also a 7 inch tft w/ 800x480 res

[moffy]

If you have a doubt about the company, which you certainly should, don't go ahead with them.

[Lowkus]

Part of me wonders if this is just some cultural difference that I am not understanding.  I can't fathom an ethical company lying about their product prices, but if it's a common occurrence in their culture then I wouldn't necessarily want to hold that against them, although it does just generally piss me off that I can't get straight information about prices.  It's the second Alibaba company in the last month to blatantly lie to me about their product prices.

[Rishles69@]

hmmm thats a good point, maybe can you try the raspberry pi 7 inch tft?

[Lowkus]

I don't see pricing on that module you linked, and I'd like to find a supplier that offers discounted prices for large volume manufacturing.  The LCD I was looking at from Microtech had a res of 1920 x 1200, so I was really let down when I found out they lied because it would have been an awesome unit at the advertised price.

[Rishles69@]

ok, can you use display from this monitor? https://www.amazon.in/dp/B073X4F52N?tag=bgms-21&ascsubtag=bing_6603d56cd712b (i don't trust the resolution in the page)

[Rishles69@]

or this one? https://www.amazon.in/dp/B07N13238M?tag=bgms-21&ascsubtag=bing_6603d5d6deaaf (it has touch too)

[Lowkus]

I'm really looking for an LCD manufacturer, rather than buying individual LCD's from popular storefronts.  And I definitely do not want to buy some product that has an LCD in it that I then have to cannibalize to get the LCD out of it.

[Rishles69@]

its 480x800 but its from adafruit https://www.interdiscount.ch/de/computer-software/pcs-monitore/monitore--C515000/adafruit-hdmi-7-lcd-display--P0001321924 (also has touch)

[Rishles69@]

https://www.thanksbuyer.com/capacitive-touch-screen-7-inch-ips-display-1024x600-7inch-hdmi-lcd-c-black-white-shell-63308

[Lowkus]

Hey Rishles69, you're using affiliate links when you post to this thread, that's not cool trying to make money off posting your links here.

[Rishles69@]

no, i just helped you, i don't have any business or smth. i don't even know them. i just suggested you for help  (sry my bad engish)

[Lowkus]

I understand you are trying to help, but could you please remove the posts that have the Amazon affiliate links?  People aren't supposed to post affiliate links in the forums.

[selcuk]

You can use aliexpress instead of alibaba since you can see the exact price before buying. I use smaller LCD screens and buy them in small quantities from the seller below. But I haven't tried it for mass quantities.

https://www.aliexpress.com/store/224898

[Smokey]

Check https://www.buydisplay.com/

.... no one has said this yet, but if this is really your "first electronics project" then you might have overextended tackling LCD interfacing.  If you are just looking for something you can plug into an HDMI port, then ya, have at it.  But if you need to do DSI/MIPI or even RGB interfacing on a high resolution display it might be a shock that that is actually a non-trivial design problem both from the hardware and the software configuration standpoints.  The fact that technical information, even Critical technical information, is often missing from these Chinese display data sheets doesn't help either.
Just saying...

[Lowkus]

Check https://www.buydisplay.com/

.... no one has said this yet, but if this is really your "first electronics project" then you might have overextended tackling LCD interfacing.  If you are just looking for something you can plug into an HDMI port, then ya, have at it.  But if you need to do DSI/MIPI or even RGB interfacing on a high resolution display it might be a shock that that is actually a non-trivial design problem both from the hardware and the software configuration standpoints.  The fact that technical information, even Critical technical information, is often missing from these Chinese display data sheets doesn't help either.
Just saying...

Ha!  I have a part of my brain that literally screams what an idiot I am for trying to tackle a project like this as my first.  But the other part of my brain tells me the fun is in the challenge.  It helps that even though I'm new to electronics I have 35+ years of programming experience, I'm hoping that counts for something.  But yeah, this project could end up a total disaster and waste of money.  Still, I love to dream big and giving myself a taste of that makes it worth the time and expense.

[Smokey]

... if it were me, before I spent any money I would document exactly what hardware and software interface I plan on using (DSI/MIPI, RGB, etc) and sort out at least a handwavy plan on how to make all that work first.  If you are using DSI, does your controller support enough lanes for the display you want to use?  Does the datasheet have all the configuration commands and sequences you need?  If you need to make hardware, sort out what the clock speed/layout guidelines/connectorization need to be on the boards.  If you need to power the display, sort out what power supply requirements are (multiple voltage rails, current requirements, power up sequences, etc). 

[Lowkus]

Most of the LCD I've seen are using MIPI.  I'm starting with the LCD as the very first component of the project, then I'll work backward from there.  Right now I'm thinking STM32H7, but it'll require more study before I decide on that.  Anyway, if I screw it up I can always pick different components and try again.

[ajb]

Check https://www.buydisplay.com/

I'll second this, I've bought singles to thousands of displays from them with no issues.  They do a decent job of providing sample initialization code for most/all of their displays which is very helpful, since the controller datasheets usually aren't great and init values are specific to the panel. 

[Lowkus]

Check https://www.buydisplay.com/

I'll second this, I've bought singles to thousands of displays from them with no issues.  They do a decent job of providing sample initialization code for most/all of their displays which is very helpful, since the controller datasheets usually aren't great and init values are specific to the panel.

They're buying from some manufacturer, and that manufacturer is who I'm trying to find.  Are there labels or data in the LCD that mention who truly manufactured the LCD?  Because if so then I just need the name of the manufacturer from that and then I can track them down.  The Alibaba sellers seem corrupt, I'm beginning to question whether they're actually manufacturers, I'm reading other people's experiences and apparently the "manufacturers" are often resellers lying about who they are and then trying to make markup money.  Also apparently it's common for them to have an opening question of "what are you building?" and then they take that idea and build it themselves, like they aren't even resellers they just want to get a feel for good ideas that might be profitable.  Both the LCD manufacturers I contacted asked me what I was building and I was intentionally vague but it doesn't build any trust to hear them ask that.  I'm pretty sure now that the whole of Alibaba is just a bunch of Chinese scammers.  Well, now I think China is full of scammers.  I almost thought about manufacturing my own LCD's after experiencing the crap of China.  But, of course in order to build a company to manufacture those in the USA you have to have oodles of money and time, of which I have neither.

[Smokey]

Check https://www.buydisplay.com/

I'll second this, I've bought singles to thousands of displays from them with no issues.  They do a decent job of providing sample initialization code for most/all of their displays which is very helpful, since the controller datasheets usually aren't great and init values are specific to the panel.

...I almost thought about manufacturing my own LCD's after experiencing the crap of China.  ...

... well I'm not sure about you guys, but there is one more user that made their way from "plausibly ignorant" into my "official troll" folder... 

[Lowkus]

Check https://www.buydisplay.com/

I'll second this, I've bought singles to thousands of displays from them with no issues.  They do a decent job of providing sample initialization code for most/all of their displays which is very helpful, since the controller datasheets usually aren't great and init values are specific to the panel.

...I almost thought about manufacturing my own LCD's after experiencing the crap of China.  ...

... well I'm not sure about you guys, but there is one more user that made their way from "plausibly ignorant" into my "official troll" folder...

You think people are a troll if they wish for components to be built in a country that doesn't specialize in swindling?

[amyk]

If you really want the lowest prices you'll need to talk to the manufacturers direclty, but they are unlikely to even answer you if you're not buying a huge quantity (1k+).

[Lowkus]

If you really want the lowest prices you'll need to talk to the manufacturers direclty, but they are unlikely to even answer you if you're not buying a huge quantity (1k+).

While that might be true I'd still like to talk to them about MOQ and what prices might be like for larger orders.  Depending on their answer it might affect whether I want to purchase their LCD in smaller quantities, even if I have to buy the smaller quantity through regular websites.  I'd like to keep in mind what the issues might be when it comes time to order larger volumes of a part.