And the best innovation in television right now is ...
What is OLED?
OLED vs. QLED? Organic or quantum? With all the technical terms you can get confused. But do not be unsettled: the OLED vs. QLED rivalry emerges as the central question for premium TV buyers, although both OLED and QLED have surprised the TV market with their appearance.
Technically the successor of the plasma television, OLED screens have quickly gained in importance in recent years thanks to the support of LG, Panasonic, Sony and Hisense and conquered some of our top TV sets lists.
QLED TVs, on the other hand, came out of nowhere in 2017 - formally as a rebrand of Samsung's SUHD TVs - and today make up a large proportion of Samsung TVs.
But is QLED technology at the forefront of current TV technology, as many people would argue, or is it mainly due to the massive advertising campaigns? Is the rival OLED technology - supported by almost all other TV brands - really the real deal?
If you hate abbreviations and have no idea which of the two technologies to choose, this guide will be of great help.
We show you everything you need to know about OLED and QLED technology, how they differ and which brands support which technology.
The battle between QLED and OLED can best be summed up in one sentence: QLED is a misnomer of the existing LCD technology, while OLED is a completely different technology.
The key phrase here is 'self-emitting'. OLED - which stands for Organic Light Emitting Diode - uses a carbon-based film between two conductors, which emits its own light when an electrical current passes through it.
Since the pixels themselves generate the light, they are switched off completely if they have to be black. That means: no bulky LCD backlight, remarkably realistic black tones, so-called 'infinite' contrast, lightning-fast refresh rates and subdued brightness, ideal for films - if dimmed according to LED standards. When you watch an OLED TV for the first time, you will have the rare feeling that you have just seen something very special.
There have been few OLED televisions in recent years because they are manufactured to a lesser extent than LED. LG has now expanded to an 88-inch LG 8K OLED and plans to develop 48-inch panels to offer viewers a wider choice of OLED sizes
What is QLED?
QLED is not a new TV technology, but a rebranding. Up until last year, Samsung called its flagship TVs SUHD, but that hasn't caught on, so it's now called QLED. Yes, that sounds very, very similar to OLED, which indicates either a decision that confuses the minds of TV buyers, or an inferiority complex. Or both. In fact, QLED - which stands for Quantum-dot Light Emitting Diode - is very different from OLED.
The strangest thing is that QLED TVs are not QLED TVs. Just like an OLED TV, a QLED TV should have a panel that is self-emitting so that it can turn individual pixels on and off. Samsung's QLED TVs can't do that, and they just put a quantum dot color filter in front of an LCD backlight. It is premature to call them QLED and they really should be called QLCD LEDs. Fortunately, not even the TV industry in need of shortcuts could live with it.
The inorganic quantum dot LEDs in a QLED panel do not emit their own light, but are backlit, just like any LCD television. That is why they are not as thin as OLED televisions.
So it is not really a display technology of the next generation, but only an adaptation to the LCD TV technology. But that doesn't mean it's not impressive - it's really very good.
Which brands support OLED & QLED?
The struggle between OLED and QLED is a struggle between brands, and it's also about a South Korean rivalry. Every single OLED panel that is in every single OLED TV is made by LG Displays, and every single QLED panel comes from Samsung.
Team OLED:
Most TV brands are behind OLED and believe that it is the superior technology for picture quality. It's hard to argue with that, but although LG, Sony, Panasonic, TP-Vision (under the Philips brand in the UK), Loewe, Bang & Olufsen, Skyworth and ChangHong all now sell OLED TVs, they are usually very good expensive. The manufacturer LG Display simply cannot produce OLED panels quickly enough to offer them at a lower cost, which only makes OLED televisions seem like first-class premium TV technology.
Team QLED:
Samsung abandoned its efforts to manufacture OLED televisions in 2014 due to the low production yield and only spoke about QLED again in 2017. It is now trying to publicize the technology through the involvement of other companies.
Samsung, Hisense and TCL partnered under the QLED Alliance in 2017 to drive the development of QLED - and to place more QLED devices in the world's largest television market, China.
Should I buy a QLED TV or an OLED TV?
If you're after a 55-inch high-end TV, buy an OLED TV because both technologies are the same price for this size. However, if you have something else in mind - a smaller screen size and / or a limited budget - it's more complicated.
Since LG Displays manufactures all OLEDs and Samsung all QLEDs, one might think that one can draw big conclusions as to which technology e.g. is better in games and which one in films. That's not the case. As with all consumer electronics products, it depends on (a) how much you spend and (b) which brand you choose.
Samsung's flagship QLED is the Samsung Q900R 8K QLED TV, while the LG E8 OLED best praises the virtues of OLED. Check out our reviews of these two devices if you want to see the best of both technologies.
The future for OLED & "real" QLED
If you are looking for the best picture quality, the advice is simple: buy an OLED TV. However, it is a scarce thing and besides, this situation may not last long because so-called QLED televisions will soon put the LCD backlight off to actually become the actual QLED technology ... and thus catch up with OLED. Keyword 'true' QLED.
"Real QLED devices are self-emitting, like OLED devices, and are not yet on the market, but are expected to be launched in the coming years," said David Tett, market analyst at Futuresource Consulting. "It is expected that once launched, they will be the greatest challenge for OLEDs since they offer many of the same benefits as OLED with only a few potential drawbacks.
So-called 'real' QLED televisions, which are self-luminous, should come from Samsung in 2020, if not later. In addition to the fact that they are self-emitting - like OLED televisions are able to switch pixels on and off individually - 'real' QLED televisions should retain their brightness advantage. Samsung could even compete with an OLED-QLED hybrid if you believe the recent reports.
When the future is bright for QLED, those behind OLED panels hope that one of the features of this technology, flexibility, will win. "OLED sets can offer new audio solutions that see the panel vibrate to produce sound, and they could also offer new form factors, both because of the panel's flexible nature," said Tett. Nowhere is this more evident than with LG's new roll-up OLED, the LG Signature Series OLED R, which can bulge into the base of the TV.
At the moment, OLED bears the crown of the best - and most expensive - television technology, but if LG Display cannot massively increase its production capacity and create more screen sizes, the immediate future of mainstream television could belong to QLED.
What is OLED?
OLED vs. QLED? Organic or quantum? With all the technical terms you can get confused. But do not be unsettled: the OLED vs. QLED rivalry emerges as the central question for premium TV buyers, although both OLED and QLED have surprised the TV market with their appearance.
Technically the successor of the plasma television, OLED screens have quickly gained in importance in recent years thanks to the support of LG, Panasonic, Sony and Hisense and conquered some of our top TV sets lists.
QLED TVs, on the other hand, came out of nowhere in 2017 - formally as a rebrand of Samsung's SUHD TVs - and today make up a large proportion of Samsung TVs.
But is QLED technology at the forefront of current TV technology, as many people would argue, or is it mainly due to the massive advertising campaigns? Is the rival OLED technology - supported by almost all other TV brands - really the real deal?
If you hate abbreviations and have no idea which of the two technologies to choose, this guide will be of great help.
We show you everything you need to know about OLED and QLED technology, how they differ and which brands support which technology.
The battle between QLED and OLED can best be summed up in one sentence: QLED is a misnomer of the existing LCD technology, while OLED is a completely different technology.
The key phrase here is 'self-emitting'. OLED - which stands for Organic Light Emitting Diode - uses a carbon-based film between two conductors, which emits its own light when an electrical current passes through it.
Since the pixels themselves generate the light, they are switched off completely if they have to be black. That means: no bulky LCD backlight, remarkably realistic black tones, so-called 'infinite' contrast, lightning-fast refresh rates and subdued brightness, ideal for films - if dimmed according to LED standards. When you watch an OLED TV for the first time, you will have the rare feeling that you have just seen something very special.
There have been few OLED televisions in recent years because they are manufactured to a lesser extent than LED. LG has now expanded to an 88-inch LG 8K OLED and plans to develop 48-inch panels to offer viewers a wider choice of OLED sizes
What is QLED?
QLED is not a new TV technology, but a rebranding. Up until last year, Samsung called its flagship TVs SUHD, but that hasn't caught on, so it's now called QLED. Yes, that sounds very, very similar to OLED, which indicates either a decision that confuses the minds of TV buyers, or an inferiority complex. Or both. In fact, QLED - which stands for Quantum-dot Light Emitting Diode - is very different from OLED.
The strangest thing is that QLED TVs are not QLED TVs. Just like an OLED TV, a QLED TV should have a panel that is self-emitting so that it can turn individual pixels on and off. Samsung's QLED TVs can't do that, and they just put a quantum dot color filter in front of an LCD backlight. It is premature to call them QLED and they really should be called QLCD LEDs. Fortunately, not even the TV industry in need of shortcuts could live with it.
The inorganic quantum dot LEDs in a QLED panel do not emit their own light, but are backlit, just like any LCD television. That is why they are not as thin as OLED televisions.
So it is not really a display technology of the next generation, but only an adaptation to the LCD TV technology. But that doesn't mean it's not impressive - it's really very good.
Which brands support OLED & QLED?
The struggle between OLED and QLED is a struggle between brands, and it's also about a South Korean rivalry. Every single OLED panel that is in every single OLED TV is made by LG Displays, and every single QLED panel comes from Samsung.
Team OLED:
Most TV brands are behind OLED and believe that it is the superior technology for picture quality. It's hard to argue with that, but although LG, Sony, Panasonic, TP-Vision (under the Philips brand in the UK), Loewe, Bang & Olufsen, Skyworth and ChangHong all now sell OLED TVs, they are usually very good expensive. The manufacturer LG Display simply cannot produce OLED panels quickly enough to offer them at a lower cost, which only makes OLED televisions seem like first-class premium TV technology.
Team QLED:
Samsung abandoned its efforts to manufacture OLED televisions in 2014 due to the low production yield and only spoke about QLED again in 2017. It is now trying to publicize the technology through the involvement of other companies.
Samsung, Hisense and TCL partnered under the QLED Alliance in 2017 to drive the development of QLED - and to place more QLED devices in the world's largest television market, China.
Should I buy a QLED TV or an OLED TV?
Since LG Displays manufactures all OLEDs and Samsung all QLEDs, one might think that one can draw big conclusions as to which technology e.g. is better in games and which one in films. That's not the case. As with all consumer electronics products, it depends on (a) how much you spend and (b) which brand you choose.
Samsung's flagship QLED is the Samsung Q900R 8K QLED TV, while the LG E8 OLED best praises the virtues of OLED. Check out our reviews of these two devices if you want to see the best of both technologies.
The future for OLED & "real" QLED
If you are looking for the best picture quality, the advice is simple: buy an OLED TV. However, it is a scarce thing and besides, this situation may not last long because so-called QLED televisions will soon put the LCD backlight off to actually become the actual QLED technology ... and thus catch up with OLED. Keyword 'true' QLED.
"Real QLED devices are self-emitting, like OLED devices, and are not yet on the market, but are expected to be launched in the coming years," said David Tett, market analyst at Futuresource Consulting. "It is expected that once launched, they will be the greatest challenge for OLEDs since they offer many of the same benefits as OLED with only a few potential drawbacks.
So-called 'real' QLED televisions, which are self-luminous, should come from Samsung in 2020, if not later. In addition to the fact that they are self-emitting - like OLED televisions are able to switch pixels on and off individually - 'real' QLED televisions should retain their brightness advantage. Samsung could even compete with an OLED-QLED hybrid if you believe the recent reports.
When the future is bright for QLED, those behind OLED panels hope that one of the features of this technology, flexibility, will win. "OLED sets can offer new audio solutions that see the panel vibrate to produce sound, and they could also offer new form factors, both because of the panel's flexible nature," said Tett. Nowhere is this more evident than with LG's new roll-up OLED, the LG Signature Series OLED R, which can bulge into the base of the TV.
At the moment, OLED bears the crown of the best - and most expensive - television technology, but if LG Display cannot massively increase its production capacity and create more screen sizes, the immediate future of mainstream television could belong to QLED.
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