65 Inches of OLED Killer from Mitsubishi

Laser TV will kill OLED before it ever really takes off. Mitsubishi has a working experimental 65-inch model. At ten inches thick, it is a fatty compared to the ultra slim OLED monitors that are starting to hit the market, but it is 65-inches, which puts their puny size to shame. New technology in the pipeline, namely the "super wide angular optical engine" promises to get the thickness down to acceptable levels by the time the first commercial models roll out.

With twice the color spectrum, twice the contrast ratio and the capability of displaying three-dimensional images, Mitsubishi looks to have a real winner on its hands. It is possible that we will start seeing the first commercial models as early as this year. If that is the case, OLED might never make it out of smaller screens.

Is OLED the hottest thing in TV tech?

Article from Techradar

Sony leads the way with the world's first commercial OLED TV, the XEL-1. It's received a chorus of critical acclaim since CES, praised for its brightness, colour saturation, lightning fast response time and its amazingly slim profile. It’s just 3mm deep.

There's no denying that the XEL-1 represents the first step towards more responsive (and more efficient) living room TVs. But let's not forget that Sony's debut OLED model is only 11-inches across, only has a 960 x 540 resolution, and costs more than many 42-inch plasmas do.

Of course, Sony has bigger, bolder OLED plans. It's already been showing off an impressive looking 27-inch OLED TV prototype at trade shows. Prices of OLED panels are sure to drop once production lines hit their stride - just as they have with other flatscreen technology.

Toshiba is also involved with OLED - it plans to sell a 30-inch OLED set in 2009. But after missing the boat with plasma and LCD, we’re pretty sure Sony’s desperation to get back ahead of the flat TV curve will force it to push OLED hard, leading to rapid innovation and a glut of screens. Having just won the HD disc war, Sony might feel that it's on a roll...

More LED backlighting

We also expect to see a big increase in the number of LCD TVs that use LED backlight arrays rather than the customary single lamp. Samsung has already released one LCD TV using LED technology, the LE52F96BD. Its outstanding picture quality should mean we see the technology reused many times â€" hopefully with ever-reducing prices â€" in the course of 2008.

In the plasma world, we also anticipate that the number of full HD sets will grow considerably, with Pioneer, Samsung and probably LG and Fujitsu all following Panasonic’s lead by managing to squeeze 1920 x 1080 pixels into a 42-inch screen as well as the larger sizes.

We also have to say, though, that 2008 could be a tough year for plasma. At the moment plasma can still play the quality card, with good PDP TVs still very much the screen technology of choice for discerning cinephiles.

But if LCDs improve as fast in 2008 as they have in 2007, the yawning sales lead that LCD currently enjoys over plasma could, sadly, reach a point of no return.

OLEDs will be used in more electronics equipment

Here another article...

The use of organic light emitting diodes will grow steadily in electronics equipment
By James Carbone
The organic light emitting diode (OLED) market will grow from about $475 million in 2006 to $1.4 billion in 2013 as OLED technology competes with liquid crystal displays (LCDs) for use in electronics equipment, according to researcher Frost and Sullivan.

"OLEDs promise to be one of the key technologies of the future, especially with

respect to display and lighting applications," says Abhigyan Sengupta, an analyst for Frost & Sullivan.

"The key advantage of OLED displays is that they are based on an emissive technology, besides which the absence of back light units gives OLEDs certain advantages over LCDs," he says.

The absence of the backlight in OLEDs makes them much more energy efficient, lighter and thin compared to LCDs, which tend to be large due to the presence of backlights. OLEDs are commonly used in MP3 players and mobile phones. They will have “tremendous potential in a range of applications including thin TVs, flexible displays, transparent monitors and white-bulb replacement," says Sengupta.

Constant price reductions in LCD technology will make the OLED market a niche for a number of years. Although the performance benefits of OLEDs surpass LCDs, the decreasing cost of LCDs remains a key factor constraining the OLED industry.

"With declining prices, OLEDs might compete strongly with LCD technology in the future, but at present, LCDs have better market presence and penetration rate even though OLEDs offer superior technology."

To establish a significant market presence, OLED manufacturers should build on energy efficiency, improve resolutions and boost OLED lifecycles.

Current and Future OLED Applications

Currently, OLEDs are used in small-screen devices such as cell phones, PDAs and digital cameras. In September 2004, Sony Corporation announced that it was beginning mass production of OLED screens for its CLIE PEG-VZ90 model of personal-entertainment handhelds.

Kodak was the first to release a digital camera with an OLED display in March 2003, the EasyShare LS633

Several companies have already built prototype computer monitors and large-screen TVs that use OLED technology. In May 2005, Samsung Electronics announced that it had developed a prototype 40-inch, OLED-based, ultra-slim TV, the first of its size [source: Kanellos]. And in October 2007, Sony announced that it would be the first to market with an OLED television. The XEL-1 will be available in December 2007 for customers in Japan. It lists for 200,000 Yen -- or about $1,700 U.S.

Sony to invest $200 million in OLED TVs

Sony has announced plans to pump 22 billion yen, which is around $203.5 million, into developing new technology for making medium to large organic light-emitting diode (OLED) panels.

Sony unveiled its first OLED TV, the XEL-1, at CES earlier this year.

Samsung also brought out OLED models, and continues to be Sony's main rival in this area.

Reuters explains: "OLED displays use organic, or carbon-containing, compounds that emit light when electricity is applied. Unlike liquid crystal display panels they do not need backlighting, making OLED TVs slimmer and more energy-efficient".

However, Sony and Samsung alike have to crack the problems of creating large OLED panels.

Sony's existing OLED TV has an 11-inch screen.