Super AMOLED: introduction and market status - Page 13

Samsung's two flagship mobile phones, the Galaxy S3 and the Note 2 both have 1280x720 HD Super AMOLED displays, but they are quite different: the S3 uses a Pentile sub-pixel architecture while the Note 2 has a unique RGB matrix. AndroidAuthority posted an interesting article comparing these two displays from a user point of view.

The conclusion? Both displays are excellent, and most users would never tell the difference. The Note 2 doesn't suffer from the Pentile pattern (which is only really visible when you magnify the images) or the the slight greenish or bluish cast of the S3. They have a good suggestion - simply spend a few minutes with both devices and decide for yourself.

Google's Motorola announced two new smartphones today, both with OLED displays. The first is the Droid RAZR HD, an Android V4 smartphone with a large 4.7" 720p HD Super AMOLED display, a 1.5Ghz CPU, 8mp camera, 16GB of memory, NFC and a large 2,500mAh battery. There's also a Maxx version which has more memory (32GB) and a larger battery (and a slightly larger size of course). The Droid RAZR HD will launch towards the end of 2012.

The second phone is the RAZR M, an LTE smartphone that features a 4.3" qHD (960x540) Super AMOLED Advanced display, Gorilla Glass, dual-core CPU, 1GB RAM, 8mp camera and 8GM of storage memory (and a microSD slot). The RAZR M will ship in September 2012 for $99 on Verizon.

Samsung announced that it has sold over 20 million Galaxy S3 phones - in just 100 days. The S3 is the fastest-selling Samsung smartphone ever. Just for comparison, the Galaxy S2 took 10 months to get to 20 million units - or about 300 days.

The S3 has a 4.8" 1280x720 HD Super AMOLED (with Pentile), a quad-core 1.4Ghz CPU (1.5Ghz dual core in the US), 1GB of RAM (2GB in the US) and an 8 mp camera (1080p video) and lot's of new software features. The phone weighs 133 grams and is only 8.6 mm thick.

When Samsung announced the Galaxy Note 2, with its 5.5" 1280x720 HD Super AMOLED display, I assumed it was a Pentile display. But it seems that the Note 2 actually uses an RGB matrix in a unique arrangement (see the photo below). Samsung calls this new matrix S-Stripe. This is rather confusing on several accounts - mostly because up till now Samsung used the brand Super AMOLED Plus for non-pentile OLEDs.

Just a few weeks ago we explained that Pentile OLED displays enable higher lifetime, and we were told that for an RGB OLED with over 230 PPI, lifetime becomes too low for Samsung and they choose Pentile in those displays. But the Note II has a PPI of 267 - the highest PPI non-Pentile OLED. This means it has a lower lifetime compared to a Pentile display (but the advantage is that there's no visible Pentile pattern of course).

Samsung announced the successor to the popular "Phablet" Galaxy Note, the Note 2 - with a 5.5" HD Super AMOLED display (1280x720, non-Pentile). Yes - this is a 'regular' glass based AMOLED panel, and not a plastic-based flexible YOUM panel as earlier rumors suggested. I guess we'll have to wait some more for Samsung's first flexible-OLED device, due in 2012 (it'll probably have a much smaller panel).

Samsung announced that they have shipped over 10 million Galaxy Note phones, since launching it nine months ago. The Note is very successful, and Samsung will announce its successor on August 29 (and it may or may not sport a flexible YOUM plastic-based AMOLED display).

Samsung's Galaxy Note is a large Android v2.3 phone/tablet (some call it a phablet) with a 5.3" Super AMOLED display with an HD resolution: 1280x800. Other specs include a dual-core 1.4Ghz processor, 8mp camera, touch display with pen input (it has a stylus). The phone is 9.65mm thick and weights 178 grams.

A few months ago Samsung said that the new Galaxy S3 has a Pentile display (a 4.8" 1280x720 HD Super AMOLED one to be exact) because PenTile increased the lifetime of OLED panels. I have discussed this with Joel Pollack, an Executive VP at Nouvoyance (Samsung's company that developed the PenTile matrix scheme), and he explains this claim further.

An OLED display is made from colored (RGB) sub pixels. A blue OLED has the lowest luminous efficiency (lower then red and green) and so needs to be driven at higher current - which means a lower lifetime.

Back in June Samsung said it hopes to sell 10 million Galaxy S3 phones by July. Today Samsung confirmed that by mid July they reached their sales target, even though they faced some component shortages.

The S3 has a 4.8" 1280x720 HD Super AMOLED (with Pentile), a quad-core 1.4Ghz CPU (1.5Ghz dual core in the US), 1GB of RAM (2GB in the US) and an 8 mp camera (1080p video) and lot's of new software features. The phone weighs 133 grams and is only 8.6 mm thick.

Raymond Soneira, our friend and display guru from DisplayMate have posted a very interesting and detailed comparison of the OLED displays in the Galaxy S, SII and SIII phones. He says that while all three OLED panels performed very well, there has been a rapid and significant improvement in OLED performance (especially power efficiency) in just 2 years.

Raymond says that high-end LCDs are brighter and more power efficient than OLEDs for text and web applications. OLEDs are better for photos and videos. He also says that while the performance is excellent, it's been compromised by Samsung's implementation choices - especially the low brightness due to power constraints (although low reflectence on those devices mean that high brightness is not critical in most situations).

Update: in mid-July Samsung confirmed that they have shipped over 10 million S3 phones, a slight delay but still a very good rate...

Samsung estimates that it will ship 10 million Galaxy S3 phones by July. They say it's hard to keep up with the demand to the new phone, and the company didn't secure enough mobile components. There are concerns that sales will be lower then expected in the current quarter, although Samsung's mobile chief says that supply issues will be resolved next week.

The S3 has a 4.8" 1280x720 HD Super AMOLED (with Pentile), a quad-core 1.4Ghz CPU (1.5Ghz dual core in the US), 1GB of RAM (2GB in the US) and an 8 mp camera (1080p video) and lot's of new software features. The phone weighs 133 grams and is only 8.6 mm thick.