LG to show 31in OLED 3D TV at IFA
But acronym-tastic telly not out until 2011?
LG will be showing off a 31in ultra-slim OLED TV at the IFA show in Berlin later this week.
The 2.9mm-thick set is capable of displaying 3D content, though LG hasn't said whether the screen requires activer-shutter or passive 3D specs - the former, we suspect.
The set's resolution has not been made public, which probably means its only capable of 720p.
LG currently has a 15in OLED TV available, though you'll pay a pretty penny for it: around £1600. The 31-incher certainly won't be cheap either, but at least it's of a size that suits it to living room viewing rather than the study or bedroom.
LG announced in November 2009 that it would this year bring an OLED TV with a display size of at least 30in but that volume production wouldn't begin until 2011. So don't expect the IFA demo model to go on sale straight away. ®
COMMENTS
OLED Can't Come Soon Enough
I really can't wait for OLED to come out. I will be the first technology that is fully superior to CRT. FYI, the biggest digital effects company on the UK (they did The Dark Knight, Harry Potter etc) gives their colour grading team 10 year old CRTs, because they are simply better.
OLED has a response time so fast that no eye would be able to distinguish it (100,000 Hz). OLED can show true black, leading to essentially 'infinite' contrast ratio, as CRTs have. OLED takes up NO space whatsoever, it is as thin as the object to which you attatch it. OLED has maximal viewing angle - almost 90 degrees from normal. Now they just need to work on the colour gamut (which is VERY good compared to plasma and LCD but not clearly better).
I believe we are entering the era of 12-bit colour, and displays that are as good as a glossy magazine printer.
Excellent summary
I think you caught all the advantages (give or take the potential for flexible displays). Are there any UK companies involved in developing this technology ?
UK Companies
Cambridge Display Technology (http://www.cdtltd.co.uk/) have been writing the book on OLED/LEP displays since the late 80s. (And yes, I've been waiting almost as long for them to come to market.)
Re: Can't wait either
I think this LCD scepticism is overblown, folks. I resisted moving from CRT to LCD for many, many years, and only did so this past April thanks to the arrival of Freeview HD.
For years, I hated LCD, couldn't afford - and didn't have the room - for a plasma, so stuck to CRT.
But I switched and I'm glad I did. Proper flat screen, good, bright colours (LED backlight), no overscan issues, no picture distortion.
I think the big issue with LCD quality at the moment is more to do with DVB-T's artefacts, but sit a couple of metres away or more and these are *much* less of an issue, IMHO.
Can't wait either
I always had to wonder about manufacturers' claims that LCD screens were better quality than CRT. Granted, some aspects of CRT look pretty archaic now (basically a huge valve that needs alot of power and a heater, huge amounts of nasty chemicals used in the manufacturing) but, as Adam 38 says, companies are still using CRTs for critical work. I was really sad when my venerable CRT packed up and all I could afford was a piss-poor TN panel LCD monitor. I can't wait for these OLEDs to become commonplace, to oust the shitty LCD displays that people put up with so readily.
