OLED TV: Introduction and Industry News - Page 29

LG Display announced that its OLED TV panels received an Eye Comfort Display certification from TÜV Rheinland, a global leader in independent inspection services.

LG Display says that its 65" OLED TVs emit 34% light, lower than TUV's 50% threshold. LGD says that the highest-spec 65" LCD panels emit 64% blue light. LGD's OLED TV panels met all of TUV's testing criteria and scored 0.87% in the light reflection category, which is half of that of LCD panels.

Samsung has not committed yet to its QD-OLED TV technology, and according to a new report from Korea the company will make its final decision by the end of June (or early July). Samsung originally planned to hold an investment review committee on April 2019 but that did not materialize. According to an industry insider, Samsung already decided to start QD-OLED TV production, the only question is timing.

Samsung's plan is to shut down an LCD TV production line and convert it to QD-OLED production - although Business Korea now suggests that another possibility is to build a new production line instead of its planned A5 fab (which was delayed/canceled in early 2018).

At CES 2019, Alienware demonstrated a gaming monitor that uses a 55" 4K 120Hz OLED display. This monitor supports 4K at 120Hz using the new HDMI v2.1 connection (also supported by LG's latest 2019 OLED TVs).

Earlier this week we reported that Alienware has not plans to actually launch this product - but according to PCGamer, a Dell spokesman says that the company is definitely going to release it - at Q4 2019 in "selected markets". This is good news for many gamers who were looking forward to this exciting (but probably highly expensive) monitor.

In March 2019 we reported that LG Display has delayed its plans for its $10 billion P10 10.5-Gen OLED TV fab in Paju, as the new larger deposition process was a larger challenge than expected.

According to a new report from Korea, LG display has actually started to install some of the Oxide-TFT deposition equipment (supplied by Applied Materials and Jusung Engineering) earlier than it first planned. LGD's original plan was to install this equipment in early 2020. The mass production at the P10 fab is expected to begin in 2021.

China-based BOE Display demonstrated many OLED displays at SID 2019, including new flexible, foldable, rollable and automotive AMOLED displays. Here's a video showing the company's complete SID lineup:

BOE also demonstrated its 55" ink-jet printed OLED TV prototypes and the company's latest OLED microdisplays.

In January 2019, Alienware demonstrated a gaming monitor that uses a 55" 4K 120Hz OLED display. This monitor supports 4K at 120Hz using the new HDMI v2.1 connection (also supported by LG's latest 2019 OLED TVs).

Alienware now updates that it is not ready to launch this monitor yet as it is still a "conceptual product" and that its "potential commercial viability is still in question". The company did say that if the product progresses, it will make an announcement at CES 2020. This will be a premium product with a price tag of over $3,000.

UBI Research estimates that OLED production capacity will increase from 34.9 million sqm to 68.5 million by 2023. LG Display and Samsung Display are expected to increase production of OLED TV and introduce new 10.5-Gen fabs better suited for 65" TV production.

Mobile OLED production capacity will also grow, but at a slower rate - from 13 million sqm in 2019 to 19.3 million sqm in 2023, mainly driven by Chinese OLED producers that produce flexible smartphone OLED displays mainly for the Chinese domestic market. Korean OLED producers (SDC and LGD) will continue to dominate the market and will retain their ~80% market share in 2023.

In March 2019 we reported that LG Display has a 48" OLED TV panel in its roadmap - but we did not have any information regarding LGD's actual production plans.

It is now reported in China that LG Display confirmed it is developing a 48" OLED TV panel and plans to start producing these in 2020 - which could mean that the TV themselves will hit the stores in 2020 - but this could also mean that they will arrive only in 2021.

In early 2019 LG announced its first 88" 8K OLED TV panel, the OLED Z9, and the company now finally announced the pricing and availability of its flagship 2019 OLED TV.

LG Electronics will start accepting pre-orders for the OLED88Z9K in Korea in June. The regular price of the TV is around $42,000 (!) in Korea, but pre-orders will enjoy a discount (to $34,000) and a free air purifier to boot. LG did not disclose when the TVs will actually ship, but it did say that they will go on sale in Europe and the US in Q3 2019 (i.e. July to September).

In November 2018 HiSense launched its first OLED TV range, the Series X in Australia. The company is now set to start shipping this TV in Europe by July 1st. The 55" model (H55O8BBUK in the UK) will cost £1,599 and is now available for pre-order at Amazon.co.uk.

The Series X were first priced at around $2,500 USD for the 55" model and $4,999 AUD for the 65" model - but according to reports HiSense lowered the price dramatically in Australia following lower-than-expected demand. This lower demand could be what pushed HiSense to launch the TV in Europe as well.