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Corporate · June 30, 2026

Planar 21by9 Series Brings 5K Ultra-Wide LCD Displays to Commercial AV: What 115% DCI-P3, 2,500-Nit Peak Brightness, and ADA Compliance Mean for Integrators

Planar's new 21:9 series ships in Q3 2026 in three sizes with Mini-LED backlighting and VESA DisplayHDR 1400 certification.

By AVinBrief Editorial Desk · · Updated August 12, 2026

What is the Planar 21by9 Series, and what sizes and core specifications does it ship in?
The 21by9 Series is a line of commercial-grade 21:9 ultrawide LCD displays in 81-inch, 94-inch, and 105-inch diagonal sizes. All three share the same native 5120×2160 (5K) resolution and run at a native 120Hz refresh rate. The displays are rated for 24x7 operation and begin shipping through Planar's authorized reseller network in Q3 2026.
What makes the backlighting and HDR performance on this series unusual for a commercial LCD?
The 21by9 Series is the first commercial display to combine a quantum dot Mini-LED backlight with dual-brightness enhancement technology. The result is a peak brightness of up to 2,500 nits (cd/m²), a 1,000,000:1 HDR dynamic contrast ratio, and a color gamut reaching 115 percent of the DCI-P3 color space, specifications not typical for an LCD. Up to 2,560 zones handle local dimming, driven by a proprietary Planar algorithm. The series has earned VESA DisplayHDR 1400 certification and HDR10+ certification.
How does Planar position the 21by9 Series in different use cases across commercial or prosumer categories?
Planar identifies three primary use environments. Enterprise collaboration spaces use the ultrawide format for unified communications and video collaboration platforms. Public-facing lobbies and retail installations treat the panoramic canvas as a visual differentiator. Private cinema rooms draw on the 21:9 aspect ratio and HDR performance. The series supports Consumer Electronics Control (CEC) management for enterprise deployments and comes in both precision metal-mesh capacitive touch and non-touch configurations. A floating picture-in-picture layout supports multi-source viewing with multiple input options.
What compliance and security certifications does the 21by9 Series carry, and which installation scenarios do they affect?
The series complies with the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), so installed depth from wall to front of display stays under 4 inches (approximately 100mm) in any of the three sizes. That matters in lobbies, corridors, and any public-facing space where ADA protrusion limits are a project requirement. The displays also meet Trade Agreements Act (TAA) compliance, a procurement requirement for U.S. federal, state, and local government projects. On the cybersecurity side, the series is certified to ETSI EN 303 645, a global IoT security standard. ENERGY STAR certification rounds out the compliance stack.
The 21:9 aspect ratio is common in theater and entertainment applications but rare in commercial ones. How does it compare to the 16:9 format that dominates commercial AV today?
A 21:9 display is substantially wider relative to its height than the 16:9 panels that currently dominate commercial AV installations. At the 105-inch diagonal size in 21:9, the display measures approximately 96 inches (8 feet) wide by 41 inches (3 feet, 5 inches) tall; that is roughly the same width as a standard 16:9 panel at the same diagonal, but about 40 percent shorter in height. That horizontal emphasis suits it for side-by-side content workflows, panoramic video collaboration, and cinematic presentation, while making it a poor fit for portrait-oriented signage (which would look very thin) or vertically stacked content layouts.

The Take

What does the Planar 21by9 Series change about how integrators should specify a conference room or lobby display?

The 21:9 format has lived at the edges of commercial AV, present in a handful of specialty applications but absent from most standard room designs, because the enterprise content ecosystem and the room-design toolkit both assumed 16:9. The 21by9 Series will not change that assumption on its own, but its mix of UC platform compatibility, ADA compliance across all three sizes, and TAA certification removes several friction points that kept integrators from specifying ultrawide panels in enterprise and government work.

The specification questions worth asking before recommending this series center on content and environment, not just specs. First, does the client’s UC platform (Microsoft Teams Rooms, Zoom Rooms, or another) actually use the wider canvas, or just letterbox it? These ultrawide displays have been supported for years and offer an immersive experience without constant scrolling or toggling between windows. Still, confirm full end-to-end compatibility with the in-room tech stack, along with the remote user experience.

Second, is the room wide enough to respect minimum comfortable viewing distance and take advantage of the display size?

Third, how does the content strategy for a lobby or retail space account for the horizontal format, and does the client’s digital signage team need to rework templates? Confirm compatibility with the content management system (CMS) platform as well.

The 2,500-nit peak brightness and DisplayHDR 1400 certification are the headline specs, opening possibilities for installations in heavy ambient light, including conference rooms with windows or bright retail environments. Color accuracy across the panel’s full size, which the wide viewing angles of an ultrawide display demand, is another key factor.

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