4K vs OLED: which TV tech is more important?
Date:
Sat, 18 Sep 2021 13:00:44 +0000
Description:
OLED or 4K? We weigh-up the two most in-demand TV features to help you make
up your mind.
FULL STORY ======================================================================
If you find yourself asking whether 4K or OLED is the technology of the moment, youre not alone. Anyone trying to buy a new television will be awash with new TV buzzwords, and of all of them perhaps the two most important to understand are OLED and 4K .
So whats it to be, OLED or 4K? Actually, you can have both. But you dont need to. There are OLED TVs that dont offer 4K (instead going for the far pricier 8K resolution ) and there are plenty of 4K TVs available that don't use OLED display technology.
However, most of the best 4K TVs are in fact OLED TVs , so its worth running through how the technologies intertwine, what specific models are out there, and why you should think about investing in either OLED and 4K if not both. Why OLED vs 4K?
Its not really a case of OLED versus 4K. The former is a display technology and the other is the resolution of most new TVs. You can find OLED TVs with
4K resolutions, yet there are many 4K TVs that use display technologies such as LCD, LED, Micro LED and QLED , which are nothing like OLED.
Do you need 4K? Yes, probably. To plump for a lower resolution TV would be to ignore one of the most mainstream TV features of all. Thats not true of OLED, which is a flagship step-up TV display technology that requires a significant extra outlay. Yes, its becoming more affordable each year, but you should
make an active decision to buy an OLED TV only after understanding why its
the best AV tech out there.
So lets begin by investigating whats so good and bad about OLED and 4K to help you make the right decision when buying a new TV. Sony Bravia A80J OLED TV (Image credit: Sony) What is OLED?
Available for over a decade in consumer TVs, Organic Light-Emitting Diode (OLED) is a display technology that uses a carbon-based film between two conductors that emits its own light when an electric current is passed through. Pixels are self-lit and individually controlled. That enables two pixels alongside each other to simultaneously produce deep black and bright white. The result is unbelievable contrast and colour, while such pixel-level control means high refresh rates, so no judder or motion blur. Once youve watched an OLED TV, its really hard to go back.
On the downside, OLED TVs can appear a little dimmer than LED or QLED TVs, though new light sensors and new innovations for 2021 are improving how OLED TVs perform in bright environments.
OLED TV panels are exclusively manufactured by LG Display in South Korea, though those panels are used in TVs sold by LG, Sony, Panasonic and Philips.
Read more: What is OLED? What is 4K?
A magnitude sharper than old Full HD TVs, 4K resolution also called Ultra HD
is shorthand for 3840x2160 pixels. Thats an 8-megapixel image as opposed to the 2-megapixel pictures from a Full HD set, making for a lot more detail in your images.
With lots of TV channels now offering 4K feeds and Netflix and Amazon Prime showing 4K content, now is a good time to invest in a 4K TV.
Read more: What is 4K? (Image credit: Realme) 4K vs OLED pricing: what do they cost?
Where OLED and 4K compete is on price. You can easily buy a 4K TV in fact, its now incredibly hard not to unless you go for a very small TV indeed but if youre going to get an OLED TV then its going to cost you.
Most OLED TVs are flagship products of the big TV brands, or thereabouts. In the last couple of years thats changed slightly, with the most expensive OLED sets on offer from the likes of LG, Sony, Panasonic and Philips boasting an
8K resolution.
8K OLED TVs are out of the price range of almost everyone and, for now, simply loss-leader brand-extension products that we can all dream of having, but absolutely dont need. Thats certainly not true for 4K OLED. Heres what
you need to know about the 4K OLED TVs currently available from the big brands. What 4K OLED TVs are there? (Image credit: LG)
LGs 4K OLED TVs for 2021
The actual manufacturer of OLED display panels is always the most important brand to watch when it comes to finding an affordable 4K OLED TV. New for
2021 from LG are a clutch of 4K OLED TVs to tempt your wallets, from the affordable A1 4K OLED Series (48, 55, 65 and 77-inch) and LG B1 4K OLED (55, 65 and 77-inch) to the LG C1 OLED TV (48, 55, 65, 77 and an all-new 83-inch) and the flagship LG G1 4K OLED Gallery Series (in 55, 65 and 77-inch) that offers all-new brightness-boosting tech called OLED evo.
Sonys 4K OLED TVs for 2021
The famous Japanese companys Bravia-branded 4K OLED TVs for 2021 comprise the A90J Series (83, 65 and 55-inch) claimed to be the brightest OLED TV of all and the A80J Series (55, 65 and 77-inch).
Panasonics 4K OLED TVs for 2021
New 4K OLED TVs for 2021 from Panasonic include the JZ980 (48, 55 and 65-inch), JZ1000 (48, 55 and 65-inch) with 30W of Dolby Atmos audio, and JZ1500 (48, 55 and 65-inch) built on its custom-made 'Master HDR OLED' panel. The flagship JZ2000 Series (55 and 65-inch) boasts an increase in peak brightness and HDR colour as well as 125W speakers with side-firing and upward-firing audio.
Vizios 4K OLED TVs for 2021
Buyers in North America have the best chance of getting hold of a 4K OLED TV for less than in Europe thanks to the huge Vizio brand. In 2021 Vizio is selling the 55-inch OLED55-H1 and 65-inch OLED65-H1 . Theyre the most affordable, budget-friendly OLED TVs around, with our review indicating that the downsides are limited brightness and poor upscaling.
Philips 4K OLED TVs for 2021
The Dutch brand is making available a bevy of 4K OLED TVs for 2021 . Its OLED 806 is available in 48, 55, 65, and 77-inch sizes and includes a 50W 2.1
sound system. Its step-up OLED 856 Series in 55 and 65-inch sizes include a T-bar stand. (Image credit: Philips) The future of OLED and 4K technologies
OLED and 4K are both mature TV technologies, but with each passing year
theyre getting better and more affordable together. Established as the high-end TV display technology for AV enthusiasts, LG Display the makers of OLED Panels keeps innovating and in 2021 it presented its new 'OLED evo' brightness-boosting technology on LGs G1 Gallery Series . Its LG Signature OLED R a 65-inch 4K rollable display that disappears into a base has also just become available , albeit for $99,999 / $99,999.
OLED TVs are also on the cusp of going mainstream. Until recently OLED TVs have been expensive largely because theyve only been available in big screen sizes; 55-inch, 65-inch, 77-inch and 88-inch, to be exact. The last year or
so has seen the popularising of a new 48-inch size of OLED TV, which is helping to make this once high-end only display technology more affordable. Production has ramped-up in 2021 so expect to see some tempting deals on 48-inch 4K OLED TVs.
A wallet-busting 83-inch size has also become available for 2021, an innovation that simultaneously has allowed the introduction of 42-inch 4K
OLED TVs (you can cut an 83-inch panel into four 42-inch panels, after all). So expect to see even smaller, cheaper 4K OLED TV sizes in the future. Which one should I buy?
If you buy an OLED TV it will come with 4K resolution. However, you need to want to buy an OLED TV, because there are myriad other TV display
technologies out there. So go look at an OLED TV in a store, compare it with the LED and QLED TVs around and youll see that while OLED TVs may not be as super-bright as some of the other screens, its OLED that looks the best in terms of the 3D-like fluidity, contrast, deep blacks and lack of judder or motion blur.
The TV tech mash-up of choice for anyone after the best picture quality, 4K OLED TVs are only going to get better and more affordable in the years to come. Here are the best 4K TVs out there
======================================================================
Link to news story:
https://www.techradar.com/news/4k-vs-oled/
--- Mystic BBS v1.12 A47 (Linux/64)
* Origin: tqwNet Technology News (1337:1/100)