The difference between LED and OLED is not just a word difference

LED TVs are now edge-lit LCDs (liquid crystal displays), which use a large number of light-emitting diodes distributed around the screen to transmit light to the center of the screen through independent wires. It makes the screen thinner, but also brings annoying viewing angle problems.

In contrast, OLED (Organic Light Emitting Display) screens are made of organic materials that emit light when an electric current passes through them. Because they do not have a backlight, OLED screens perform better than competing products.

Benefits of OLED

OLED TVs offer a higher density of pixels and sharper images, which means that OLED screens can fully display three-dimensional images without sacrificing image resolution like most other TVs. Watching natural scenery videos on an OLED TV is like looking through a window, rather than watching a glowing box.

And haven’t we talked about color yet? OLED displays are able to artificially create all the colors found in nature. Looking at an OLED screen after looking at an LCD screen is like Dorothy in The Wizard of Oz opening the door to Wonderland for the first time.

OLED screens have nearly infinite contrast, so there were no color aliasing or black spots when watching The Dark Knight on Blu-ray. OLED also overcomes the problem of motion blur, the annoying, scary ghosting you see on LCD sets when people flash across the screen quickly. These advantages alone make OLED screens the display of choice for gaming.

We really like OLED screens, which not only make TVs lighter and thinner (LG showed a model that was just 55mm thick), but they can also be bent. We haven't seen any big screens that can do this yet, but we're sure you'll be able to hang your TV from the ceiling in the near future.

What are the disadvantages?

OLED TVs have not yet been priced by manufacturers, but you can imagine that they will be about twice the price of LCD HDTVs. Also, their usability is about ten years before you have to consider replacing them, and blue OLEDs only have a lifespan of 14,000 hours (equivalent to five years of use at 8 hours a day).

You can't use this set outdoors or in a brightly lit room, because too much light will obscure or fade your TV image. Also, long-term exposure to ultraviolet light can actually damage the organic pixels, forming dead spots, which is the regrettable equivalent of a used car that is no longer worth money.

You may have heard that OLED screens are environmentally friendly products that consume less power, but this is not true. When the image is dark, the power consumption of the OLED screen is only 40% of that of the LCD; but when the image has a white background (Windows desktop, web pages, playing the TV series House MD), the power consumption of the OLED screen is three times that of the normal situation.

Still not mainstream

We have mixed feelings about the new OLED TVs. Although they offer unrivalled picture quality, OLED TVs are still not widely available. Even Sony, which is involved in the development of the technology, has to focus on LCD LED screens until the technology matures.

If your family is going to share a TV for daily viewing, you'll want to rule out these expensive options. If you have a room dedicated to watching movies and TV shows, and you don't watch them for more than five hours a day, an OLED TV is worth considering.