Tom is wondering if there's a new TV technology coming out. Leo says that there are two kinds of TVs right now, LCD/LED and OLED. LCD has different flavors, including LED, MiniLED, QLED. But the next generation is microLED, which will be like OLED, but the LEDs are really super tiny. Samsung has a 108" model for $156,000 that is more of a technology demonstrator. But we'll be seeing them more affordably on the horizon soon.
Scott joins Leo to talk about CES this year, and he says there's been a ton of news already. Leading the way is micro and mini LEDs, the latest version of LCD TV technology. Instead of hundreds or thousands of LEDs, there are now tens of thousands. And that translates to more accurate color and dynamic range. This year will be the year of mini LEDs with LG announcing the QNLED model of 4K TVs, and Samsung showcasing their NEO LED.
Greg is looking to get a 65" TV with decent sound. Suggestions? He'll be getting a soundbar later. Scott Wilkinson says that Sony makes the best OLED TVs with decent speakers. The design is actually the screen itself, with drivers behind them. But that's going to cost well over $1500. Better to get a soundbar for $100. That way it doesn't really matter what TV he buys.
Speakers on TVs are really an afterthought these days. The best choice is to pay a little less for the TV and then add the Soundbar now. Scott recommends Vizio or TCL. The TCL M Series is in Greg's price range.
Parker is a gamer and is looking forward to Cyberpunk 2077. He recently bought the Nvidia RTX 380 video card for his PC. He's got it connected to his TV, but it's causing a problem with the resolution. Leo says Parker is going to need a 4K TV that can handle a higher refresh rate. Leo says that LCDs are notoriously low. So an OLED may be the way to go. Latency is also an issue, but OLEDs handle that as well as the best LCDs. OLEDs are around 14ms, and some are GSync compatible. So look for that.
Scott joins Leo to talk about how the iPhone Pro 12 shoots video in Dolby Vision high dynamic range. Leo says it then plays it back in all three HDR standards and can edit them as well. And it's very impressive. It can also shoot 4K at 60 frames per second. Completely cinematic.
In other news, this week was Amazon Prime Days, and Scott saw that Amazon was pointing out better prices on TVs at other places like Best Buy. But Scott didn't really see any great TV deals and Leo thinks the deals are much better elsewhere.
Tim is having issues with screen burn-in of the status bar on his Android phone and it's OLED screen. How can he avoid it? Leo says it may be possible to avoid it with a custom launcher and rooting your phone. Leo uses Active Launcher. Nova Launcher is another good one. Both have themes, including a clear status bar. The chatroom suggests this article on how to fix screen burn-in.
Charles wants to know the difference between QLED and OLED. Is QLED better? Leo says that it's more marketing. Samsung wants people to think that QLED is as good as OLED, but it's really just another LED technology with backlit LCDs. OLED is a better technology with bolder, more accurate colors and deeper, richer blacks. Is there a risk of burn-in? Leo says that modern OLEDs have solved that problem.
Scott Wilkinson reports that Samsung Display will stop making LCD panels by the end of next year. The parent company, Samsung Electronics, will still make LCD TVs, getting their panels from elsewhere. But what they are going to be doing is focusing solely on QLED, quantum dot LED panels. Scott says that they are LCD TVs with a quantum dot backlight. It takes blue OLED material and passes it through quantum dot material, converting it to blue, red, or green. It's a process called Quantum Dot Conversion, or QDCC. And it'll hit the market next year. Samsung will also be making a QD OLED.
If you are shopping for a decently large TV with a good price tag, check out products from brands TCL and Hisense. They are Chinese companies that are trying to break into the United States market, so their prices are quite affordable. Plus, they often have Roku built-in, which is arguably better than creating their own smart TV software.
Sam joins Leo to talk about the news that Cadillac has designed a gorgeous OLED display system for their Escalade SUV. They're made by LG and consists of three separate displays, including two touch screens. Leo says that one of the problems though with OLED is the burn-in problem. If you're going to have a car for 10-15 years, how are they doing to deal with that? Sam says that LG is probably using pixel shifting to battle the burn-in problem. As for an upcoming electric vehicle by Cadillac, that likely won't happen for at least five years.
