Samsung roadmaps 42in OLED TVs for 2010

Samsung's plan to roll out 14in OLED screens by 2010 - revealed last week - turns out to be merely the first step toward the release of 40in and 42in panels a year later.

Samsung's display operation, Samsung SDI, has a roadmap that calls for 14-15.4in, 1280 x 800 (WXGA) OLEDs for laptops and TVs in the 2009 timeframe, along with 21-23in, 1600 x 1200 (UXGA) panels for TVs.

SDI's roadmap, posted by Nikkei's Tech-on website, makes a distinction between the 21-23in screens and larger, 40-42in panels due the following year, in 2010. The latter are described as "full HD", presumably becuase they're actually widescreen panels - the UXGA's have an aspect ratio of 4:3.

SDI began mass-production of the Active Matrix OLED (AMOLED) panels to be used in TVs and PCs this past September. That said, it's currently churning out nothing larger than a 2in panel for phones and other handheld devices.

Next year, it will roll out 3.5-7in panels for UMPCs, before making the leap to laptops and TVs in 2009.

SDI's roadmap still leaves it behind Toshiba, which this month claimed it would have 30in OLED TVs on the market during 2009 - well ahead of Samsung's larger screens.

In December, Sony will ship the XEL-1 - the world's first commercial OLED TV - in Japan.