Transparent top-gate Al-Zn-Sn-O (AZTO) thin-film transistors (TFTs) with an $Al_2O_3$ protective layer (PL) on an active layer were studied, and a transparent 2.5-inch QCIF+AMOLED (active-matrix organic light-emitting diode) display panel was fabricated using an AZTO TFT backplane. The AZTO active layers were deposited via RF magnetron sputtering at room temperature, and the PL was deposited via two different atomic-layer deposition (ALD) processes. The mobility and subthreshold slope were superior in the TFTs annealed in vacuum and with oxygen plasma PLs compared to the TFTs annealed in $O_2$ and with water vapor PLs, but the bias stability of the TFTs annealed in $O_2$ and with water vapor PLs was excellent.