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The last five years or so have seen the television market diversify to the point where it's hard to keep up. Simple LCD and plasma TVs have been replaced by a veritable alphabet soup of acronyms like QLED, Neo QLED. OLED, Mini LED, Micro LED, and probably a few other variations I'm forgetting. It's a lot for a tech writer to keep track of, let alone the average consumer.
Also: The best TVs money can buy
This article is designed to clarify the differences between two of the most popular technologies out there: Neo QLED and OLED. We'll demystify what defines each technology, what the pros and cons of both are, and which might best serve you in your next TV.
A trio of Samsung's Neo QLED TVs in 4K and 8K resolutions
We'll start with the basics. Neo QLED (Neo Quantum Light Emitting Diode) is a proprietary technology created by Samsung for its 4K and 8K televisions. The panels employ what Samsung calls Quantum Matrix technology, which provides backlighting via thousands of tiny LEDs. Each LED is a small fraction of the size of those in older TV backlighting setups. This makes Neo QLED's closest non-proprietary analog Mini LED (explained below in the FAQ section).
Also: The best QLED TVs you can buy (from 50 to 98 inches)
The benefit of this type of panel is that you have thousands of lighting zones. In older TVs, sections of the screen that should have been pitch black often appeared gray or milky due to the limited number of lighting zones. Some older TVs have as few as four. With Neo QLED, very precise portions of the screen are lit. The result is an image with better, sharper contrast between lights and darks and more accurate colors. Color accuracy is also helped by Samsung's use of its Quantum Dot technology, which provides additional light filtration on a pixel-by-pixel basis to make the colors more accurate and richly saturated.
A 97-inch LG OLED TV at CES 2023
OLED is an older, non-proprietary technology that differentiates itself by using a single layer that provides light and color. Where Neo QLED and most other panel types rely on one layer to provide the colors for the individual pixels and another layer to light up those colored pixels, OLED panel pixels provide their own light.
You can think of an OLED TV as an array of millions of microscopic, color-changing LEDs. Each pixel emits its own colored light, meaning there are as many lighting zones as there are pixels. Each one can also switch off entirely, providing essentially perfect black levels.
Also: Must-have OLED TVs: The crown jewel of home theaters
OLED televisions have been around for years now, with the most models having been produced by LG. However, almost every major TV manufacturer, including Samsung, now makes its own OLED models today.
This model of Sony OLED is thinner than the Pixel 6 Pro used in the pic.
As with most technology comparisons, there's no universal answer here. Your correct answer is dependent on what type of TV viewing you do most, what your budget is, and what makes TV ideal for you, specifically.
So, we're going to provide you with a selection of the most important pros and cons for each technology to help you determine which is best for you.
Some models of Samsung's Neo QLED television feature the option to display multiple sources and apps at once.
OLED TVs won't give you a million-dollar infinity pool to look at behind them, but this Sony model would still look futuristic in any living room.
Hopefully reading this piece will prevent you from being as confused as this guy looks.
There are some categories of consumers to whom I would recommend one type over the other:
Lastly, let me offer some words of comfort: The fact is, both Neo QLED and OLED TVs are great. There are models of either TV type that will blow away anything that came before, and will likely make you forget any doubts you had the second you flip it on for the first time in your living room.
Whichever side of this article you settle on, it's a good idea to future-proof your purchase by selecting a model that supports the latest HDMI technology. HDMI 2.1, the current standard, supports features like resolutions of up to 10K at 120Hz, Dynamic HDR for the best color performance, and reduced latency for gaming. Don't break your budget for an HDMI 2.1 model, but consider if it might be worth spending a bit more on a TV that supports it now, so you can hang onto that display further into the future.
We'll focus on the most important and practical ones:
This is a common point of contention between shoppers in the same household. Some say "the biggest one you can afford" is the answer, but others note that even 4K resolutions look less appealing when stretched beyond 65 inches and viewed up close.
Samsung advises using "Viewing distance (in inches)/2 = recommended TV size" as your rule of thumb. This means you should get a 60-inch TV if you're planning to sit 10 feet (120 inches) from the display, a 30-inch model if you're only 5 feet away, or a massive 80-inch screen if you're over 13 feet away.
Personally, I'd suggest getting some cardboard or thick paper and mocking up the different potential sizes. I find seeing the real-world scale of the rectangle you'll be staring at often clarifies things better than any equation can.