The television space has seen massive innovation recently. Exciting new display technologies promise better brightness, contrast, clarity, and color than ever before. But with so many acronyms and marketing terminology flying around, it can get confusing to parse it all.
In this guide, I’ll be comparing two of the most advanced consumer TV types – Samsung‘s QD-OLED and LG’s latest OLEDs. You’ll learn how they differ, evaluate their merits, and decide which upgrade might suit your needs best. Let’s crack the code on these state-of-the-art screens!
Demystifying the Technologies
These terms might sound complex but the concepts themselves are easy grasps at a high level:
OLED stands for organic light-emitting diode. In an OLED TV, every single pixel produces its own light independently. This gives OLED exceptional control over brightness and perfect black levels. When a pixel is truly off, no light comes through at all – offering infinite contrast.
QD-OLED combines OLED backlight technology with a quantum dot layer. The quantum dots act like a filter to produce super wide color gamuts with high brightness. This Quantum Dot OLED approach retains OLED’s black level prowess while boosting luminosity.
Understanding these core technological differences helps clarify how performance varies between self-emissive OLED and enhanced QD-OLED panels in the real world. Now let’s see how today‘s top consumer models like Samsung’s S95C QD-OLED and LG’s B2 OLED compare side-by-side.
Samsung S95C QD-OLED vs. LG B2 OLED At-a-Glance
| Samsung S95C QD-OLED | LG B2 OLED | |
|---|---|---|
| Display Type | Quantum Dot OLED | OLED |
| Backlighting | QD-enhanced Blue OLED | Self-emissive OLED pixels |
| Individual Dimming Zones | Not disclosed | None (self-lit pixel level) |
| Peak Brightness (nits) | 659-1022 nits | 417-705 nits |
| Refresh Rate | Up to 4K 144Hz | Up to 4K 120Hz |
| Response Time (ms) | 0.1 | 0.1 |
| Screen Sizes Available | 55, 65, 77-inch | 55, 65, 77, 83-inch |
| Smart Features | Tizen OS | webOS |
From this high-level comparison, you‘ll notice:
- Samsung‘s QD-OLED backlight beats LG‘s traditional OLED in peak brightness
- But LG‘s per-pixel light control enables astonishing contrast without dimming zones
- Gaming speeds favor the S95C with true 4K 144Hz support vs 4K 120Hz on the B2
- Features like smart platforms and response times are effectively identical
Clearly both television types have tangible advantages and disadvantages that suit different viewing environments and use cases. Let‘s analyze them deeper across the attributes that most impact your experience.
Contrast & Depth: OLED Strikes Back
While QD-OLED televisions tout higher peak brightness, traditional OLED panels excel at contrast thanks to per-pixel dimming control. Each self-emissive pixel switches on and off independently without the need for dimming zones.
Consider HDR content encoded with metadata for true blacks down to 0 nits brightness and peakwhite highlights up to 1000 nits or beyond.
On LG‘s OLED, blacks will sink perfectly to 0 nits thanks to pixels powering off completely. It can cleanly output infinite contrast between true black and peak brightness. This makes shadows richer and textures more visible despite lower overall brightness caps.
On Samsung‘s QD-OLED, the liquid crystal layer and blue OLED backlight mean the panel can’t achieve perfect 0 nit blacks when fed a full black signal. Its static contrast still utterly outclasses LED/LCD televisions thanks to OLED‘s influence. But likely falls short of LG OLED’s essentially infinite dynamic range.
The result? LG OLEDs should beat Samsung QD-OLED for depth and cinematic appeal when viewed in darker room lighting. Their 0 nit full black depth which jumps straight to peakwhite highlights has a dazzling 3D effect that wraps viewers more intensely into on-screen worlds.
This matters for home theaters and serious cinephiles. But QD-OLED’s luminance lead has counterbalancing benefits we‘ll uncover next.
Luminosity & Precision: QD-OLED Strikes Back
We just discussed how LG‘s OLED panel enables unmatched black level depth. However, modern video content increasingly leverages HDR encoding for brighter, bolder and more realistic colors.
On paper, QD-OLED televisions like Samsung‘s S95C promise better realization of content creators‘ HDR vision thanks to higher luminance measurements. Peak brightness caps closer to 1000 nits mean more accurate tone-mapping and color volume for HDR10 and Dolby Vision grading specifications.
Brighter highlight details better approximate how light behaves across the full intensity range in the real world. This helps images “pop” more through improved perceptual contrasts. Things like specular reflections, flames and exploding particulate matter can blaze at their encoded intensity rather than clipping prematurely.
Plus, according to Samsung, their quantum dot filtration layer enables 150% wider color gamuts than conventional OLED televisions. This means colors at any luminance have finer granularity, avoiding banding or posterization artifacts.
Notably Samsung quotes up to 95% color volume coverage compared to rec. 2100 HDR color spaces. That gives images enhanced realism, avoiding dull or muted tones where traditional OLEDs truncate more vibrant hues.
For streaming shows and movies mastered in HDR, Samsung QD-OLED presents their cinematic vision more faithfully. Outdoor/ambient lighting diffuses OLED’s blacks anyway – so you mostly just “waste” their infinite contrast without darkness. QD-OLED punches through better for lively, rich images regardless of environment.
Now let’s move beyond living rooms to… gaming dens?
Gaming Execution: Shocking QD-OLED Speeds
Gaming monitors have chased ever-higher refresh rates for years now, drastically improving fluidity in PC titles and competitive response times. Until recently, OLED seemed difficult to manufacturer at scales beyond 4K 120Hz.
Impressively, Samsung‘s 2023 S95C QD-OLED lineup supports up to 4K 144Hz input signals when used as a gaming monitor. For context, that enables up to 144 FPS for silky smooth animation if your graphics card can keep up.
Couple blazing 144Hz with QD-OLED‘s 0.1ms GtG response time, AMD FreeSync Premium Pro and Nvidia G-Sync Compatible VRR standards, automatic low latency modes, and there is shockingly little lag or blur.
Action RPGs, shooters, racing sims – they all feel tangibly snappier thanks to both fluidity and clarity improvements from this cutting-edge big screen gaming display.
While no slouch, LG‘s B2 OLED tops out at 4K 120Hz – an important threshold but still 24Hz behind Samsung‘s threshold. For hardcore gamers demanding that utterly fluid feeling, they may find the S95C‘s bleeding-edge specs worth paying premiums for.
Fortunately, both TVs support the latest HDMI 2.1 interconnectivity and gaming features. So console gaming and multimedia performance should satisfy on either display. But PC enthusiasts with elite GPUs may hunger for the S95C’s future-looking refresh rates.
Smart Ecosystems: Two Capable Choices
Given how deeply streaming has penetrated global entertainment habits, a television‘s integrated smart platform remains highly relevant. Both Samsung and LG equip their TVs with intuitive, responsive operating systems that cover all essential functions.
Samsung‘s Tizen OS stands as one of the most straightforward smart TV environments with snappy navigation and support for every major catch-up and streaming video provider. Setup walks users through pairing mobile devices, cloud services, live TV via HDMI, and voice assistants.
LG‘s webOS platform similarly enables simple configuration letting your accessories and accounts sync quickly. The carousel UI keeps recently used apps front-and-center while lending itself well to navigation via remote or voice commands.
Since both operating systems succeed equally across core smart TV metrics like usability, voice support, search, and third-party app ecosystems, this area won‘t dictate preference much. Thankfully whether you pick Tizen or webOS, streaming will feel responsive and intuitive.
Now let‘s examine how design philosophy impacts physical form factors available.
Size Considerations: Advantage LG
Modern television shoppers expect ample size options to match their room dimensions, seating distances, and budget limitations. Samsung currently only manufactures their S95C QD-OLED model at 55, 65, and 77-inch class dimensions.
Comparatively, LG‘s B2 series OLED extends from 42.5-inch screens up through 83-inch models comfortably eclipsing Samsung‘s largest at 77-inches. For buyers wanting to maximize immersion, LG OLED unlocks more viewing real estate helping images feel more impactful and environments more surrounding.
Of course, pushing beyond 77-inches introduces additional costs and logistical considerations around wall mounting, delivery, and installation. But having choices suits buyers better across living spaces big and small. This size variety keeps LG‘s OLED lineup accessible to broader swathes of shoppers.
With any large television purchase, measuring your room and mapping intended placement is crucial. Be sure whichever model fits your space before committing to be thrilled long-term.
Exciting Advancements Ahead
Having just unpacked distinguishing strengths around contrast, brightness, color, motion clarity, sizes, and smart ecosystems, you hopefully feel better equipped to select between QD-OLED and standard OLED.
While both prove impressive, we expect rapid-fire enhancements given immense investments flowing into global OLED manufacturing. Beyond benefits to consumers, new panel innovations drive profits through sustaining technological leadership and enabling premium pricing tiers.
At CES 2023, LG unveiled even brighter OLED panels dubbed OLED EX which leverage deuterium gas and personalized algorithmic optimization to achieve higher luminance targets. This narrows the brightness gap with Samsung‘s QD-OLED approach.
Simultaneously, rumors suggest Samsung will expand QD-OLED production capacity five-fold year-over-year allowing larger screens and lower costs. Also analyst Ross Young indicates Samsung is researching QD-OLED EX panels adding more green and red quantum dot emitters to boost color volume to 99%+ of DCI and Adobe RGB.
Between brightness explosions, black level perfections, and color gamut expansions – both brands seem poised to take premium TV imaging into unprecedented territory over coming years. It‘s an exciting time to be a display enthusiast or AV nerd!
But don‘t just take my word for it. Let‘s examine how leading home theater authorities have appraised these television technologies while also answering some commonly asked questions.
Glowing Reviews Validate the Hype
Despite slightly trailing Samsung‘s QD-OLED peak brightness measurements in lab testing, LG‘s OLED TVs swept premium television awards and recommendations across top industry publications:
- CNET: Best high-end TV – LG G2 OLED
- Rtings.com: Best OLED TV – LG C2 OLED
- Reviewed.com: Best TV of 2022 – LG C2 OLED
- Digital Trends: Top TV Pick – LG G2 OLED
- PCMag: Best Overall TV – LG G2 OLED
Praise centered on LG‘s continued improvements actualizing OLED‘s technical potential for flawless contrast and color while reducing cost. Samsung‘s QD-OLED also earned applause but couldn‘t overcome LG‘s category leadership (yet).
Clearly both display technologies satisfy enthusiast reviewers and redefine realism. But based on these aggregated verdicts, LG OLED still captures plaudit preferences – especially their outstanding C2 and G2 series that elegantly balance premium performance with more palatable pricing.
But don‘t just take reviewers‘ words for it. Let‘s clarifies some common questions side-by-side to determine which upgrade fulfills your needs best!
Frequently Asked Questions
Which TV technology performs better in bright rooms?
- Samsung‘s QD-OLED exceeds 1000 nits brightness allowing clear, vivid imagery even in sunlit spaces. LG OLED remains viewable but tops around 800 nits so colors wash out more.
Which TV has better dark room contrast?
- OLED‘s per-pixel lighting control enables flawless blacks down to 0 nits. This creates dazzling dynamic range in dark spaces. Samsung QD-OLED still outperforms LED/LCD but won‘t match OLED‘s uncapped contrast.
What content takes best advantage of QD-OLED capabilities?
- Quantum Dot filtration significantly expands color volume and brightness which provides the most benefit for HDR video mastered closer to 1000-4000 nits peak luminance.
Why doesn‘t OLED burn-in seem problematic for LG‘s TVs?
- LG leverages comprehensive pixel safety measures like logo detection, shifting pixels imperceptibly, and keeping voltage uniformity in check so burn-in likelihood remains negligible.
Who makes the QD-OLED panels inside Samsung TVs?
- Samsung and Sony co-developed this backplane, transistor, and quantum dot passivation process technology. But Samsung owns their next-gen QD-OLED panel fabrication with mass production capabilities.
I hope demystifying these trailblazing displays‘ differences helps you weigh upgrades tailored to your viewing preferences. Feel free to reach out with any other questions!