jeudi 30 juillet 2020

What is OLED? Explanation of black levels, burn-in and contrast ratios

Qu Is OLED? TV panel technology is found in a lot of new high-end TVs these days, so it's no surprise that you want to know what you're actually watching before you buy.

The short film The answer is that 'OLED ' stands for 'OrganicLight Emitting Diode ', describing the type of panel used to display images, colors and light on your TV - unlike other types of TV panel technologies such as CRT (cathode ray tube), LED -LCD or QLED (quantum point).

You'll find it used in a multitude of display devices, but most notably OLED TVs as well as some high-end smartphones (like the iPhone 11 Pro).

While we don't think you should be familiar with all acronyms, OLED is an important term to familiarize yourself with if you're looking for a newsmart TV, or just looking for research to understand the latest discussions around today's best TVs to buy right now. This is because many of the newer and larger TVs have OLED panels, only Samsung's QLED panels really offering a rival.of any kind.

But just because OLED is (almost) everywhere, that doesn't mean it's not worth shouting about. Compared to its predecessors - and most LCD screens currently on the market - OLED TVs offer better picture quality (think blacker blacks and brighter whites), lower power consumption. and faster response times.

Not everyone owns OLED TV, of course, due to a pretty steep price barrier. That is slowly changing, thanks in large part to more affordable models like the LG B9, increased production, and a smaller 48-inch size for the CX OLED and Sony A9G OLED.

The big question is: should we believe the OLED hype? We've brought you everything you need to know about the big screen buzzword in the guide below.

Don't have time to read an entire article? lookour quick OLED explainer video below:

FAQ

OLED FAQ: answers quick to questions

  • Is OLED better than LED? They are different. OLED excels in some areas, such as contrast, color accuracy, and black levels, although low light can rub you the wrong way.
  • Is OLED better than 4K? OLED TVs tend to have crisp 4K resolution, but most 4K TVs do not have OLED panels. Pick and choose as you like!
  • Is OLED better for my eyes? OLED panels emit around half the amount of blue light as equivalent LCD TVs, which should reduce the risk of eye damage and stop evening programming to prevent you from sleeping. You should also benefit from these advantages for OLED smartphones.
  • Why is OLED so expensive? They are expensive and difficult to produce, with many models suffering from breakage on the line from the factory. (Only working TVs are retailed, of course.)
  • What is the lifespan of an OLED TV? Any OLED TV should last for years of use. In 2016 The Korea Times reported that LG OLED TVs have a lifespan of over 100,000 hours (11 years of constant use).
  • Should I be worried about OLED burn-in? Probably not. Image retention is not a widespread problem and it is unlikely thatYou will be affected - although we have more information on this below.

OLED explained

What is OLED, and how is it different?

OLED stands for Organic Light-Emitting Diode, with "organic" referring to the carbon film that sits inside the front panel glass screen.

OLED panels emit their own light when an electric current is passed, while cells in an LCD-LED display require an external light source, such as a giant backlight, for brightness .

This backlight is what separates LCD screens from their LED variants. A traditional LCD screen has a backlight (called cold cathode fluorescent light, or CCFL) that is uniform across the back of the screen.

This means that if the image is black or white, it isnt illuminated by exactly the same brightness on the panel. This reduces what we call "hotspots, or areas of super bright light, because the light source shining on them is uniform."

It all started a few years ago when engineers from companies like Samsung and Sony introduced an array of LEDs as a backlight, which meant that if a certain part of the screen was black , the LEDs behind that part could be turned off to make it darker.

This is a better solution than a CCFL backlight, but it still has its issues. Since it is a light behind the LCD producing the illumination rather than the LCD layer itself, the illumination is not fully synchronized with the pixel in front of it. The result is an effect called "blooming," whereby LED light from bright parts of the image bleeds into areas of darkness.

This is what separates OLEDs from LCD / LED screens. Dans an OLED TV screen, the pixels themselves are the elements that produce light, and so when they need to be black, they can go out completely, rather than relying on a backlight for extinguish on their behalf.

Most OLED TVs offer exceptional picture quality, even if they are must be paired with a high end processor to really do justice to the sources (Image credit: Panasonic)

OLED: what are the advantages?

The result is remarkable blacksdark in an image, and when you combine that with the brilliant whites of an OLED panel, you're left with an incredibly vibrant image.

LG and Panasonic, roughly the most consistent producers of OLED TVs on the planet, like to use the term "infinite contrast " to describe how self-illuminating pixels turn off completely when reproduction of black, which gives it an "absolute " black color instead of a "relative " black which describes only the degree of darkness of a pixel relative to the brightest pixel on the screen.

For years there was a question mark over the longevity of OLED panels, as production lines were uneconomic due to high failure rates .

But as companies like LG invest billions in OLED development - with Philips and Sony joining the fray - its affordability is improving, even so. 'it is always more expensive than competing technologies. The current production problems of LG's latest TV factory will also not help accelerate this price drop.

The advantages of OLED go beyond simple static image quality, but the responsiveness and smoothness of the screen itself, which means gamers and home theater enthusiasts will love OLED TV.

OLED panels are capable of a refresh rate as low as 0.001ms, which for reference is about 1000 times faster than a standard LED-backlit LCD panel, while still also being superior to plasma now abandoned technology too.

And, because the light source they use is so small that the depth of the screen sizes has decreased at the same rate. This means that OLED TVs have incredibly deep blacks and crisp, bright whites, color accuracy.Improved ors along with smooth responsive movement - and all from a form factor just a few millimeters deep and much lighter than standard TVs.

LG ownsplenty of new OLED TVs for 2020 (Image credit: LG)

Televisions

OLED: Which OLED TVs are now available?

OLED TVs have been on the market since 2012, and various manufacturers have tackled the technology over the years. Previously, OLEDs were only produced by Samsung and LG.

But Samsung has ditched the technology above its cost and difficulty in producing, and has no plans to restart production anytime soon. More recently, Hisense also ditched its OLED lens.

LG, on the other hand, has released OLED sets regularly over the past few years. LG 2020 TV lineup saw a new LG CX Series OLED, an LG GX 'Gallery ' Series OLED to replacer the old LG E9, an LG Signature ZX 8K OLED, as well as many others.

If you're not a big fan of LG TVs, there are plenty more OLED TVs to look forward to in 2020 as well. The 2020 Panasonic TV lineup includes the premium Panasonic HZ2000 OLED, as well as a more affordable HZ980 series that's new for this year - while other midrange OLED sets like the Philips 55OLED754 continue to do well. work in our tests.

You can also check out our guide to the best OLED TVs to see the best models we've had the pleasure of reviewing on the site - or on our OLED TV deals page for the lesser sets. expensive currently available.

OLED: comment How much does it cost?

OLED TVs are getting cheaper and cheaper, but they are still far from what we would call affordable. New pricesLG TVs start at $ 1,600 in the US and £ 1,500 in the UK, and Panasonic's are even more expensive.

The scarcity of OLED TVs on the market means that this small number of market players are more or less free to charge exactly what they want. However, an increase in competition is helping to change this, as is the introduction of a new 48 inch panel size and an increase in production.

It's significantly cheaper to buy a 2019 OLED right now, with the budget LG B9 costing just $ 1300 / £ 1100 and the Philips OLED 754 retailing at just £ 999 - not good market compared to some LCDs, but still the cheapest way to get a decent OLED in your home.

  • Check out the latest OLED TV prices and offers for more details

Burn-in

Do I need to worry about OLED burning?

What is OLED combustion? Burn-in, or image retention, occurs when an image or footage is played so often and continuously on a TV that it leaves a permanent mark on the panel - this is obviously not ideal. for a home TV.

Don't be particularly concerned, as this usually only happens when displaying a static image or repeating sequence, such as with a display unit in a showroom or retail store. You should get a multi-year warranty, anyway, and we don't see a lot of home theater fans using their OLED TVs this way.

TV makers like LG are also working to limit the risk, with screen saver features, a Screen Shift feature that "Lightly lace up the screen at regular intervals to preserve picture quality "and " Logo Luminance setting, which can detect static logos on the screen and reduce brightness to help reduce permanent retention of the image "(via LG.com ).

But if you plan to leave your TV for countless hours at a time - for example, to parent the kids while you're gone or to play the same video over and over again - then OLED may not be the right panel tech for you.

Burn-in shouldn't worry you, thanks to Screen Shift features and improved manufacturing processes (Image credit: Toshiba) < / figcaption>

What next?

What future for OLED?

OLED is an expensive panel technology that has finally managed to gain groundain - after spending so much time as an outlier that we wrote an opinion piece in 2014 on how technology could be dead.

Obviously, this didn't turn out to be the case, and we are seeing plenty of stunning OLED models hitting the market, although prices still take a while to come down within reach. regular consumers.

But just because OLED isn't affordable and doesn't mean it doesn't get better. A price of $ 1,600 / £ 1,200 isn't what we think of as a budget, but it's a lot cheaper than what OLED was selling just a year ago.

This trend is always going to be good news for the consumer, although manufacturers may have other things on their mind.

Samsung is one of the many televisions that are looking to develop what is called QD-OLED: a new type of OLED panel that uses emitters.ers of quantum dots to improve brightness. The technology is in development, but when it does arrive, it could merge competing QLED and OLED technologies and render previous production methods obsolete.

These are obviously big claims, and we're yet to see these hypothetical new panels put to use - but we'll be sure to keep you posted as this is happening. not produced.

The original report in this article was from Jamie Carter.

  • Convinced? Check out our roundup of the best OLED TVs you can buy right now

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