Panasonic reveals new OLED TV for 2017

[afterlife2]

31st August 2016 by Joe Cox

IFA 2016 and, having launched a new, more affordable 4K Blu-ray player, the Japanese giant also revealed its working on a new generation of OLED TVs.

The company is showing a prototype Panasonic OLED flat screen at the show, details of which the company was keeping very close to its chest.

Panasonic did confirm that full details would be revealed later this year - "winter" was the time given - ahead of a likely launch at CES 2017.

Panasonic also told What Hi-Fi? that the key area of improvement would be black levels and particularly degradations of colour "just above black".

A demonstration of the new OLED screen (which isn't a Panasonic panel) against a "conventional OLED" - Panasonic refused to confirm the model to which it was being compared - certainly looked very impressive, seeming to deliver even darker blacks, without losing detail or affecting the punchiness of bright colours.

The company promised a step-up in performance over the company's existing Panasonic CZ950 TV, as well, of course, as other OLED TVs on the market.

Details on screen size, model ranges and pricing were met with a stony silence, so we'll have to wait for later in the year for more details. But the good news is there will be more Panasonic OLED TVs...

 

[Jeffrey S. Albaugh]

This is fantastic news.OLED blows away 4K UHD sets. Currently, only LG offers OLED TV's. This is very welcome news. OLED is superior because: 1.Superior color 2. The very best Contrast Ratio: Infinite!. 3.The best off- axis viewing on the planet.
There is NO Backlighting or Edge lighting whatsoever. Those are just a crutch that will fade away. Instead, every single pixel is self illuminating and go down to total black independently! Panasonic is saying, basically their new OLED will outperform the 4K UHD and SUHD from Samsung. These will be 2017 releases. This will hurt 4K UHD. Hopefully, other manufacturers will join the OLED superiority. One disadvantage: The price. If you do not or will not pay the difference, you will have to settle for less quality. Your decision. Cheapskates will stay away from it.

 

[BoredSysAdmin]

Cheapskates will stay away from it.

Way to go dear sir. USA median income is a bit under 52k year... I have hard time believing that these people will buy 6-8k Oled set and somehow calling almost 99% of hard working americans Cheapskates doesn't sit right with me

 

[afterlife2]

Look who else is in:
http://www.pocket-lint.com/review/138686-philips-901f-4k-oled-tv-with-ambilight-is-as-beautiful-as-it-is-capable

https://www.engadget.com/2016/09/01/philips-android-tv-first-oled-ambilight/?sr_source=Twitter

 

[Jeffrey S. Albaugh]

Way to go dear sir. USA median income is a bit under 52k year... I have hard time believing that these people will buy 6-8k Oled set and somehow calling almost 99% of hard working americans Cheapskates doesn't sit right with me

This is America and you have a choice. No one is making you buy OLED. One reason that OLED prices remain high is because there is only LG making them right now. By 2017, Panasonic will be making OLED TV. The more manufacturer's that make OLED, the more the prices will drop.

I also predict that Curved TV's will go away (not a big seller & expensive). They are not new. The first one was the Kloss Novabeam from circa 1970. It was very crude by today's standards. The screen was silver (to try to make the picture look brighter). 3D: I feel that 3D was brought out for the greed of the manufacturers. At that time, it was not ready for prime time. Stores like Best Buys heavily rammed it down consumers throats. IMHO: Till this day, there should not be any 3D TV's. It will come to fruition only when there will be Glassless 3D. As of today, we don't have it. That is precisely why 3D failed.

My reasons for curved TV's failing. In order to really appreciate curved TV, the screen needs to be practically as wide as your room. Otherwise, some people will sit outside of the sweet spot and will loose some of the effects, compared to someone sitting in the middle of the room.

 

[j_garcia]

VR will replace 3D because it occupies the same niche market. 3D at home is actually quite good, but it was too expensive including the cost and lack of media and in TVs is already all but dead. Was it worth it? Not so much. Curved TV is a gimmick lol.

OLED is the current future prospect as that is what all manufacturers are moving to and no LG isn't the only one - Samsung has a full lineup too. Sharp is gone, but their operations will show up soon enough under another branding. QLED (quantum dot) will also have its portion of the market but large TV size displays are not really there yet until the manufacturers invest in it. QLED is a gap tech / extension of LCD but I think it will happen because it is based on current tech. There is always a new tech on the horizon too. OLED has been on the horizon for a LONG time and still hasn't come into its own, but it is getting better. Cost to produce is still the factor simply because the manufacturers aren't investing as heavily in it. When they do, the cost will go down.

 

[Jeffrey S. Albaugh]

VR will replace 3D because it occupies the same niche market. 3D at home is actually quite good, but it was too expensive including the cost and lack of media and in TVs is already all but dead. Was it worth it? Not so much. Curved TV is a gimmick lol.

OLED is the current future prospect as that is what all manufacturers are moving to and no LG isn't the only one - Samsung has a full lineup too. Sharp is gone, but their operations will show up soon enough under another branding. QLED (quantum dot) will also have its portion of the market but large TV size displays are not really there yet until the manufacturers invest in it. QLED is a gap tech / extension of LCD but I think it will happen because it is based on current tech. There is always a new tech on the horizon too. OLED has been on the horizon for a LONG time and still hasn't come into its own, but it is getting better. Cost to produce is still the factor simply because the manufacturers aren't investing as heavily in it. When they do, the cost will go down.

Sorry, but Samsung does not make any OLED's; they make SUHD. Not as good as OLED.

 

[slipperybidness]

Sorry, but Samsung does not make any OLED's; they make SUHD. Not as good as OLED.

That's odd

http://www.samsung.com/us/support/owners/product/KN55S9CAFXZA

 

[3db]

Way to go dear sir. USA median income is a bit under 52k year... I have hard time believing that these people will buy 6-8k Oled set and somehow calling almost 99% of hard working americans Cheapskates doesn't sit right with me

Seems like Jeff totally missed the boat on your response.

 

[afterlife2]

Seems like Jeff totally missed the boat on your response.

Maybe he mistook that they were not making any in 2017.

 

[lsiberian]

Cheapskates will stay away from it.

Why would a pay 8k for a small television? You may like little screens, but some of us want a real home theater experience.

 

[j_garcia]

Sorry, but Samsung does not make any OLED's; they make SUHD. Not as good as OLED.

SUHD is more of a marketing term for a class of TV, not a type of display like LCD or OLED which are actual technologies.

 

[Jeffrey S. Albaugh]

That's odd

http://www.samsung.com/us/support/owners/product/KN55S9CAFXZA

Again; Samsung makes 0 OLED TV's.

 

[j_garcia]

Samsung DID make OLED for one year but really not mass market. It was more of a "keeping up with the Jones's" to say they had it. They have dropped it in favor of QD LED (based on current tech) and ultimately QLED.

 

[Jeffrey S. Albaugh]

VR will replace 3D because it occupies the same niche market. 3D at home is actually quite good, but it was too expensive including the cost and lack of media and in TVs is already all but dead. Was it worth it? Not so much. Curved TV is a gimmick lol.

OLED is the current future prospect as that is what all manufacturers are moving to and no LG isn't the only one - Samsung has a full lineup too. Sharp is gone, but their operations will show up soon enough under another branding. QLED (quantum dot) will also have its portion of the market but large TV size displays are not really there yet until the manufacturers invest in it. QLED is a gap tech / extension of LCD but I think it will happen because it is based on current tech. There is always a new tech on the horizon too. OLED has been on the horizon for a LONG time and still hasn't come into its own, but it is getting better. Cost to produce is still the factor simply because the manufacturers aren't investing as heavily in it. When they do, the cost will go down.

VR will replace 3D because it occupies the same niche market. 3D at home is actually quite good, but it was too expensive including the cost and lack of media and in TVs is already all but dead. Was it worth it? Not so much. Curved TV is a gimmick lol.

OLED is the current future prospect as that is what all manufacturers are moving to and no LG isn't the only one - Samsung has a full lineup too. Sharp is gone, but their operations will show up soon enough under another branding. QLED (quantum dot) will also have its portion of the market but large TV size displays are not really there yet until the manufacturers invest in it. QLED is a gap tech / extension of LCD but I think it will happen because it is based on current tech. There is always a new tech on the horizon too. OLED has been on the horizon for a LONG time and still hasn't come into its own, but it is getting better. Cost to produce is still the factor simply because the manufacturers aren't investing as heavily in it. When they do, the cost will go down.

Plasma TV had a life span of 60,000 hours. OLED TV has a life span of 100,000 hours. The LG OLED comes with several modes which incorporate ISF Calibration! Nowdays, it's hard to even find an ISF Calibrator anywhere. Where did they go? Greedy Best Buys always jumps in to support half baked ideas like 3D or Curved TV. That's because they only care about one thing: $$$$$$$$. Nothing else matters to them.

 

[Jeffrey S. Albaugh]

Samsung DID make OLED for one year but really not mass market. It was more of a "keeping up with the Jones's" to say they had it. They have dropped it in favor of QD LED (based on current tech) and ultimately QLED.

That was when OLED was in it's infancy, and they were having manufacturing issues at the time.

 

[mtrycrafts]

... That's because they only care about one thing: $$$$$$$$. Nothing else matters to them.

And, short term. No long term planning. What will this quarter or next be like?

 

[j_garcia]

That was when OLED was in it's infancy, and they were having manufacturing issues at the time.

OLED's infancy was around 30 years ago. I invested in a local start up doing flexible OLED almost 20 years ago...still hasn't happened lol.

 

[Jeffrey S. Albaugh]

OLED's infancy was around 30 years ago. I invested in a local start up doing flexible OLED almost 20 years ago...still hasn't happened lol.

I was referring to the time when OLED was released into stores. At the time it was 2K OLED. I was not referring back to decades ago. Incidently, I have seen that some stores have dropped their price on remaining 2K OLED still in their stock, trying to unload them.

 

[j_garcia]

I was referring to the time when OLED was released into stores. At the time it was 2K OLED. I was not referring back to decades ago. Incidently, I have seen that some stores have dropped their price on remaining 2K OLED still in their stock, trying to unload them.

Gotcha, figured you meant consumer. TV tech is changing but was already pretty good to the point where TV sales have leveled out. Even 4K isn't something getting people to bite, plus media is consumed differently now - more tablet and phone viewing happens rather than everything getting watched on TV.