MicroLED It is a technology that helps a display to produce brighter and higher-contrast images that are not possible with other known technologies. Manufacturers claim that the MicroLED panel format has several advantages, including increased brightness, longer life-span and lower power consumption.
This technology was introduced by Samsung at CES 2018 and the company has finally released several different TV sizes with MicroLED. However, these TVs are pretty heavy on the pocket, even though they were all aimed at consumers. MicroLED is still a direct competitor to OLED and it is expected that in the future this technology will become more affordable making it a truly viable option for consumers. So, let’s go into detail about how this technology works and how it can be a suitable alternative to OLED.
What is MicroLED?
As we’ve discussed before, MicroLED displays are almost like OLED (Organic Light Emitting Diode) panels made up of multiple micro LEDs, which self-illuminate per display pixel. The only difference here is that unlike OLED displays, MicroLED displays use inorganic materials, which also bring the advantages of ultra-low black levels, but with higher peak brightness.
Most mainstream LED panels are actually LCD panels with LED-based back or edge lighting. MicroLED panels do not require separate backlighting which means blacks are darker and whites are brighter without the light bleed that is typically associated with most LED-backlit TVs.
How does MicroLED work?,
MicroLED achieves similar results to OLED because it also has self-illuminating pixels. Like OLED, each pixel in a MicroLED display has its own light source that is able to be turned on or off as needed. Helps create better contrast and no light bleeds onto surrounding pixels. Therefore, when you see a black pixel on the screen it means that one pixel is turned off and there is no light.
How Is MicroLED Better Than OLED?,
Brightness is important not only to determine how good a picture is, but it’s also important to a content’s HDR effectiveness. MicroLED has a contrast ratio of 1,000,000:1 and can emit far brighter light than an OLED display (which is up to 30 times brighter). Although OLED panels are improving, the peak brightness levels in these panels are limited compared to other LED panels such as Samsung’s QLED panels.
This is possible due to the inorganic material (gallium nitride) that is used in MicroLED displays. This material enables individual RGB LED sources to be brighter for longer periods. The organic matter in OLED panels is depleted if the screen is left bright for too long. In contrast, inorganic materials have a longer life span.
Benefits of MicroLED Panels for Manufacturers
MicroLED technology is a modular technology where panels are made up of multiple smaller displays, which are “woven together” to form a larger screen. This means that manufacturers can customize the panels according to customer requirements. It is a very flexible solution that allows multiple aspect ratios such as – 21:9, 16:9 and others.
You can expect irregularly shaped MicroLED TVs in the future. Samsung has also mentioned that upscaling and processing will not hurt sharp image delivery.
MicroLED TV availability
Samsung unveiled the 146-inch ‘The Wall’ 4K TV at CES 2018 followed by the commercial launch of The Wall Professional designed for industrial installations. Later, in 2019, Samsung unveiled a 219-inch version and in 2022 the company showed a 1000-inch 8K 120Hz panel, citing the limitation of this technology.
The South Korean tech giant also introduced a 75-inch 4K version for home consumers, but it came with a hefty price tag. The company had plans to announce a new variant in 2020-21, but there is no update on those plans yet.
LG has released its own 175-inch . also launched MicroLED TV At IFA 2018, however, there is no update on the availability of the TV and it seems that the company has shifted its entire focus to OLED TVs.
The future of MicroLED panels
MicroLED panels have the potential to compete with and even outperform OLED panels. Consumers will be able to see similar black levels but with greater brightness, lower power consumption and longer lifespan.
The biggest drawback of the technology is its manufacturing cost, which is expected to decrease in the future as manufacturer investment increases. After being more affordable, it could be a real rival to OLED panels.