MicroLED panel is a new technology that helps to produce a bright and high-contrast image that is not possible with other technologies. Manufacturers say that the microLED panel format has many advantages like it increases brightness and lower power consumption.
Samsung introduced this technology in 2018 and then eventually many television manufacturers released TV with microLED. Micro LED is the direct rival to OLED technology and hopefully become more affordable in the upcoming future. So here is the complete detail about the micro LED.
What is microLED?
Micro led is a type of display just like OLED panels. OLED panels contain many microscopic LEDs, that self-illuminate per pixel. The only difference is that MicroLED uses inorganic material. Many LED panels have LED back or edge lighting. MicroLED doesn’t require separate backlighting which means that blacks are darker and whites are brighter without the light bleed used in most backlit LED TVs.
How does MicroLED Work?
MicroLED gives almost the same result as OLED display offers. It also has self-illuminating power. This helps it to produce better contrast and therefore there is no light bleed on surrounding pixels. When you find a black pixel on the screen it means that the pixel has turned off and there is no light.
Is MicroLED Better than OLED?
Brightness is not only the factor to determine HDR effectiveness of content but is also essential. MicroLED has a contrast ratio of 1,000,000:1 and can offer more brightness than OLED displays. OLED technology is improving but the best is yet to come. They can beat the brightness level of microLED.
The brightness level offered by MicroLED is possible only due to the inorganic material gallium nitride. This material enables each RGB LED source to go bright for a longer period.
Advantages & Availability of MicroLED
MicroLED technology is modular-based technology. It builds the panels of multiple smaller displays. This means that manufacturers can produce customized panels as per user requirements. it is a very flexible solution to design multiple ratios like 21:9, 16:9, and others.
LG launched its 175-inch MicroLED TV at IFA in 2018. However, there are no updates on the availability of the TV and after this much time, it seems that the company is focusing only on OLED TVs.
MicroLED: Cost and Difficulties
Almost every company in the industry claims that MicroLED panels are the future. Ranging from Samsung to Apple all big tech giants are continuously hiring Micro LED developers. Customers started to expect an Apple Watch or iPhone that has MicroLED technology.
Despite high brightness, wide color, and modular design the Micro LED display attracts a lot of attention. Still, we have to realize that it is in the R&D phase. Its manufacturing cost is far more than OLED. It is very challenging to produce and place several million micro LED chips and make them work smoothly.
The Samsung company recently claimed that you can customize the Micro LED display into different sizes and shapes according to the user’s requirement. However, the company is still not able to maintain the pixel density to achieve 4K resolution while downsizing the screen. Even if they produce mid-sized Micro LED TVs for domestic use, the pricing is high because it depends on the production cost.
Future of microLED panels
MicroLED display has great potential in the upcoming future to compete with OLED panels and even outperform them. Customers can view the same content but with greater brightness, lower power consumption, and a longer lifespan of the display.
The only drawback of this technology in today’s time is its manufacturing cost. However, with more research and development in the technology, we can expect this manufacturing cost to go down shortly. The MicroLED panels are genuine rivals to the OLED displays if they are available at an affordable price range. However, for now, we can say that microLED is almost the same as OLED panels.
In terms of contrast, MicroLED is new but it’s less mature than OLED. Even though it has a lot of advantages it will not make justice too sooner to jump to the conclusion that Micro LED will overcome OLED panels.