LG Display, a sister company of LG Electronics, has announced that the OLED panels used in the company’s TVs have recently received the “Perfect Black” certification. The certification process is carried out by the independent quality assurance lab of UL Solutions and applies to LG’s OLED panels from 42 to 97 inches.
LG TVs are rated by UL Solutions in a “brightly lit environment” such as “a living room in daylight.” In this case, the black levels measure 0.15 nit – about 40 percent less than the Perfect Black criteria of 0.24 nit, according to the company’s release.
It’s not dark anymore
OLED TVs are average the best 4K TVs and have long been known for “infinite contrast,” a power that LG has promoted since the first sets to use the technology were released. Anyone who has laid eyes on an OLED TV can confirm that blacks really do look perfectly black, and stay that way even when viewing images from a distant seat.
As for the measurements mentioned in the LG Display press, as long as you dip below 1 nit, any difference is not there. To the human eye, a black level of 0.24 nit and 0.15 nit will appear as perfect black.
Given this small difference, the main purpose of LG’s certification process seems to be about proving that its OLED displays can maintain their deep black level, and result in infinite contrast, in the bright areas, rather than the dim ones preferred by movie fans – those who are likely to pay the extra money. good OLED TVs.
Analysis: the living room battle between OLED and mini-LED is heating up
Why is LG suddenly bragging about the amazing performance of OLED, something we already knew it was? A possible reason is that mini-LED QLED TVs are gaining market share, especially with affordable models like those from. TCL and Hisense thrown into the mix with Samsung, Sony, and LG’s more premium offerings.
Small LED TVs can achieve the same infinite contrast as OLED, but do so by modulating areas of their backlight using a process called local dimming. To show deep black shadows, the LEDs in the specific area where they appear can be turned off completely.
OLED TVs, by contrast, are self-contained – each pixel on the display is its own light source. The individual pixels on the TV can be turned off completely, and modulated to display a very low black level. This technique gives an edge to conventional LED and mini-LED TVs, where the output of the backlight can appear in high contrast images, producing a visible phenomenon called “bloom.”
Despite its limitations, mini-LED TVs are able to be close to OLED-like black levels with infinite contrast, and the best models are able to continue to bloom to a minimum – so that most viewers will not notice it. They can deliver much higher brightness than OLED, and cheaper models like Hisse U8H we tested twice as bright as the average OLED.
High brightness is the most important factor in a typical living room, and this is where mini-LED QLED TVs offer a distinct advantage over OLED. To put LG’s unusual announcement, it seems that the company is trying to communicate that OLED will continue to do what it does best in the bright room.
I don’t have a statement that is as clear as black and white. But when it comes to the dark side, the message is received.
