OLED TV

What is an OLED TV?

OLED TVs use a new display technology called OLED (Organic Light Emitting Diodes). OLED televisions will be brighter, more efficient, thinner and with better refresh rates and contrast than LCD or Plasma TVs.

31-inch OLED TV prototype (Samsung)

Sony XEL-1 OLED-TV

In December 2007 Sony started to sell the first OLED TV, the XEL-1, which is actually more of a technology prototype than a commercial set. The XEL-1 is a small television (11"), expensive (around 2,500$) and Sony only makes it in small quantities (and have recently announced it will cease production of it altogether in Japan). But the picture quality, colors and contrast are amazing, and the whole TV is just 3mm thick!

Sony XEL-1 OLED TV

Samsung OLED TVs

In June 2009 Samsung has revealed two new OLED TV Panels, 14.1" and 31". They are both "ready for production", and we can assume Samsung will start to produce them yet.

Samsung 31-inch OLED HDTV

LG OLED TV

LG have unveiled their first OLED TV, the Object 15". It has a 1366 x 768 resolution, contrast ratio of 100,000:1 and it's only only 1.7mm thick. It is on sale now in Korea (for around $2600), and will arrive in Europe in May 2010 (and will cost 1999 euro). Hopefully it'll be sold in the US too, soon.

The future of OLED Televisions

Several companies already have large-sized OLED TV prototypes. Samsung has shown a beautiful 40" HDTV OLED, and Panasonic has a 37" display of their own.

LG display has revealed their OLED TV roadmap: 15" displays in 2009, 20" in 2010, 30" in 2011 and 40" or larger panels in 2012. The 40" panels in 2012 will be "fairly expensive"... LG says that in 2012, OLEDs will cost about 50% more than LCDs, and by 2016, OLEDs will cost 20%-30% less than LCDs.

Currently the companies are trying to keep the costs down, and also there is a problem of lifetime - OLED displays go 'dim' faster than Plasma or LCD ones - but this aspect is advancing rapidly. OLEDs are great as 3D Displays, and at least two companies (Sony and Samsung) have shown prototypes of such sets.

15-inch OLED TV prototype (LG)

It might take a few years yet until OLED TVs become competitive with LCD or Plasma displays. Several companies have plans for OLED Televisions in the near future:

• Sony stated several times that they are really close to release a larger OLED TV. 21" or 27", the new generation is was to be unveiled at the IFA 2009 trade show, at September. That didn't happen though, and Sony have delayed this new TV to 2010. New reports say it will be called the KDL-ZX OLED TV.
• LG will start selling 15" OLED TVs in November 2009, and plan larger TVs in the next few years (40" will arrive at around 2012).
• Panasonic have teamed up with Sumitomo to work on 40" or larger OLED TVs.
• Samsung has got 14.1" and 31" OLED panels which are "ready for production".
• Seiko Epson are working on inkjet printable OLED TVs. They hope to have 37" sized TVs made using their technology in 2012.

Sony 27-inch OLED prototype

Other companies such as CMEL and Sanyo have active OLED research, but haven't yet revealed commercial plans.

Samsung 40 HD-AMOLED TV Prototype

25-inch OLED prototype by CMEL

A little bit about the technology

OLEDs are made by placing a series of organic thin films between two conductors. When electrical current is applied, a bright light is emitted. The OLED materials emit light and do not require a backlight (unlike LCDs). In fact OLED TVs are better than LCDs in many ways:

• OLED TVs have Faster refresh rate, better contrast and better color reproduction.
• OLED TVs are really thin - the Sony XEL-1 for example is just 3mm thick. The new prototypes by Sony are merely 0.3mm thick!
• OLEDs have a much better viewing angle - almost 180 degrees.
• Better for the environment - they draw less power, and contain no bad metals.
• OLEDs can actually be made flexible or transparent. Imaging a foldable large OLED TV that takes no space when not used...

Rollable OLED televisions?

Like we said before, OLEDs can be made flexible, or transparent. In the future we might see an OLED displays that is actually rollable. So maybe you could just roll it when you want to watch some TV, and then remove it when not needed.

Or perhaps the OLEDs will be so thin and transparent that they will just be invisible when not in use - you'll just see the bare wall, but when lit up, it'll display your TV picture. 

Samsung flexible OLED

This future technology is already being worked on, but it will obviously take some time before we could buy such TV sets...