Update: The LOMID project was actually launched in 2015, the post below details its interim results...

The EU launched a new project called LOMID (Large cost-effective OLED microdisplays and their applications) that aims to develop next-generation large-area OLED microdisplays for VR and AR applications. The project's partners will produce flexible OLED microdisplays sized 13 x 21 mm (about 1-inch diagonal) with a resolution of 1200x1920 (2,300 PPI).

The project is led by the Fraunhofer FEP and other partners include MicroOLED, CEA-Leti and the University of Leipzig and the University of Oxford. The project will run until 31.12.2017. The Fraunhofer will demonstrate the prototype you see above at the SID-Mid-Europe Chapter Spring Meeting.

Display Supply Chain Consultants (DSCC) released a new free white paper (sponsored by Nanosys, a quantum-dot producer) in which it analyses the premium TV market and compares the future of OLED TV to that of QD-LCD TVs.

According to DSCC, the total TV market will grow from 261 million units in 2016 to 282 million in 2021 - a slow CAGR of 1.6". The OLED TV market will grow at a rapid rate of 50% - from 0.9 million panels in 2016 to 6.8 million in 2021. Even at this fast growth rate, OLEDs will represent only 2.4% of the total TV market in 2021. The main constraints towards faster OLED TV growth, according to DSCC, will be production capacity and not demand.

LG Electronics officially unveiled its 2017 OLED TV lineup, with no real surprises. At the top of the line, LG launched its OLEDW7 Wallpaper Signature OLED TV with a thin (2.57 mm) panel that attaches magnetically to the wall. The W7 comes in either 65" or 77".

In addition to the wallpaper TV, LGE also launched new models of its existing four OLED TV series, the OLEDB7, OLEDC7, OLEDE7 and OLEDG7 signature TV. All of these new TVs feature updated HDR support (for four different standards), WebOS 3.5 and Dolby Atmos sound. Interestingly, the C7 is no longer curved - so LG actually will have no curved OLED TV to offer in 2017.

As expected, Sony finally launched its first OLED TV (well, except the 2008 11" XEL-1). The XBR-A1E Bravia OLED TV features a flat 4K OLED panel. The TVs are based on the Android TV platform and feature HDR (both HDR10 and Dolby Vision HDR) and a built-in speaker which is part of the stand behind the TV to create a stand-less form factor. Sony will offer the TVs at 55", 65" or 77" and the TVs will ship later in 2017.

The OLED panel themselves are produced by LG Display. According to reports, LGD agreed to supply Sony with 100,000 panels each year.

LG is demonstrating a new technology which they call Crystal Sound OLED - which is an OLED panel that contains an embedded sound system. LG says that this technology is only possible with an OLED panel as it does not require backlights.

LG Display demonstrated a 65" Crystal Sound OLED - and the company says that it provides a better immersive viewing experience as the sound comes directly from the characters on the screen and not from an off-center sound speaker. LGD says it will unveil 55" and 65" 4K Crystal Sound OLED TVs in the future.

San Francisco based Osterhout Design Group (ODG) officially announced two new AR headsets, both based on OLED microdisplays. The high-end R-9 provides a 50-degrees FOV based on a FHD (1080p) OLED microdisplay. This device is based on ODG's own Project Horizon platform, and will ship in Q2 2017 for around $1,799.

ODG R-9 headset

The R-8 offers a smaller FOV (40-degrees) and a lower resolution OLED (720p). The R-8 will ship in the second half of 2017 for "less than $1,000". Both headsets are based on Qualcomm's Snapdragon 835 CPU and support Qualcomm's Snapdragon VR SDK and PTC's Vuforia AR platform.

Kopin unveiled its first OLED microdisplay called the Lightning, which features a 2048 x 2048 resolution (2k x 2k) at 1" diagonal and a fast refresh rate of 120 Hz. Kopin specifically targets VR applications for this new microdisplay.

Kopin also unveiled a new optics system, which they brand as Pantile optics which is less than 30 mm thick and can be used to make thinner and lighter VR systems. A concept Pantile optics and Lightning OLED device is shown below next to a Samsung Gear VR system.

OLED microdisplay maker eMagin announced that the company started to ship 2k x 2k OLED microdisplays "as part of an agreement with a Tier-One company". This could be the announced first licensee for eMagin's HMD design or this could be a different company. eMagin also announced today that it signed a second partner (or customer?) and expects to sign more such agreements in 2017.

It's not clear whether eMagin is shipping samples or actual volume microdisplays, and whether this Tier-One company is a partner or a customer. We know that AMD is working with eMagin (but I believe that AMD aims to become a foundry for eMagin if/when it needs higher volume). A potential customer is ODG, but ODG is not using eMagin's 2k x 2k OLEDs but rather lower-resolution ones.

The European GLADIATOR project, led by the Fraunhofer Institute, developed a functional flexible OLED lighting panel based on graphene electrodes. This new panel is 2 x 1 cm in size - much larger the previous prototype developed as part of that project last year.

The GLADIATOR project will conclude in April 2017. In the following months, the researchers aim to improve the graphene electrode by minimizing the impurities and defects that occur during the transfer of the graphene sheet. The project's leader, Beatrice Beyer, estimate that such OLEDs with graphene electrodes could be commercialization within 2-3 years. In September 2015 Graphene-Info posted an interview with Beatrice, discussing the technology behind this project.

In December 2016 we posted that Forbes speculates that Sony may announce an OLED TV lineup at CES 2017 - and this was confirmed by LG Display and the OLED Association a few days later.

Sony 56-inch OLED TV Prototype, 2014

Korean news site ETNews now updates that the supply contract between LGD and Sony was officially signed. LGD will begin to supply OLED TV panels to Sony in Q2 2017, and has agreed to supply Sony with about 100,000 TVs each year.