Sony OLED displays, OLED TVs
Back in 2004, Sony produced the world's first PDA with an OLED display - the Clie PEG-VZ90. It had a large display (3.8"), but was made in limited quantities. Sony continued to use small OLEDs in their MP3 players and mobile phones. In 2006 SonyEricsson introduced a bluetooth watch with a small blue OLED display, and in 2009 Sony announced that the new flagship OLED Walkman" player will have a 3" touch AMOLED. XEL-1, the world's first OLED TVSony made huge headlines when they introduced the world's first OLED TV, the 11" XEL-1, in November 2007. The XEL-1 is actually more of a prototype than a commercial set - they only make a thousand units a month of this expensive (2,500$!) television. But Sony sure made their mark on the OLED world. In February 2010 Sony announced that they will cease production of the TV in Japan.  Sony XEL-1 OLED TV
Sony OLED WalkmanIn January 2009, Sony unveiled their new 'X' series OLED walkman. They say it's the best sounding walkman ever, and it's got the best display, too: a 3 432x240 touch OLED. It is shipping now all over the world.  Sony OLED walkman
Sony has also placed a large AMOLED in their new NW-A840 walkman.
Sony says OLEDs are the futureSony are quite committed to OLEDs. Towards the end of 2007 they stopped making rear-projection TVs, focusing on LCDs, and OLEDs for the future. Sony knows that OLEDs are more efficient than LCDs,and are also working on making them flexible and transparent. In February 2008 Sony announced it will spend 200M$ on OLED production lines - for medium to large sized panels.  Sony 27-inch OLED prototype
Sony plans to introduce new OLED TVs soon. There are talks of a 27", 21" or maybe even 30" TVs. Sony have delayed their next OLED TV to 2010. Some say it'll be called the KDL-ZX, while others think it'll be the XEL-2. Following suit will be a 40" model. The new Sony OLED TVs will be even thinner than the XEL-1. Latest stories about Sony OLEDs:Sony stops producing/selling the XEL-1 in Japan02/16/2010Sony says that they have stopped production of the XEL-1 OLED TV in Japan, and will stop selling it when they run out of inventory. They will continue to sell and produce the OLED TV for the US, EU and other markets though (which is a bit confusing, because they say they stopped producing it). Sony will also continue their OLED R&D. Still no news on any upcoming larger OLED TVs...  Sony XEL-1 OLED TV
Via Reuters OLED TVs will have to find new ways to compete with LCDs02/01/2010Tech-On has posted an interesting article about OLED TV status. They discuss the situation of the technology, why is it so difficult to make a large OLED panel, and how are the various TV makers trying to solve the issues. I think the two most interesting points are:
Here's the link to Tech-On's article. Sony XEL-1 TVs in Amsterdam ArenA photo01/31/2010Sony has installed 20 XEL-1 OLED TVs in the press gallery of the Amsterdam ArenA stadium. It seems that the responses has been great, and people are very impressed with the performance of the OLED TV displays. . 
Via HDTV Nieuws Will 3D TV be the killer-app for OLEDs?01/31/2010So 2010 is here, and we're still waiting for a real commercial OLED TV. While OLEDs are advancing quickly in smart phones and digital cameras, it seems that no one is willing to commit to large panels - OLEDs are still very expensive to make. Another problem facing OLED TVs is LCDs - in the past few years LCDs have gotten thinner, cheaper, more efficient and they look better. One area in which LCDs do not shine, though is 3D. This was the hot topic at CES - many companies (including Sony, Samsung, LG, Panasonic, Toshiba and more) have shown their 3D Displays, and announced future models. However it seems that LCDs are not so good for 3D viewing. In fact Plasma (and OLED) TVs are much better. LCDs has problems with fast switching of photos, and there's "crossover" between the left and right image (more information on 3D TVs here). OLEDs is even faster and better than Plasma, and is said to be the best way to view 3D. Both Sony and Samsung have unveiled new OLED 3D TV prototypes in CES.  Sony 24.5-inch 3D OLED prototype
If consumers will actually be interested in 3D TVs at home (nobody is sure about that yet...) than this might be great chance for OLED TVs. OLEDs will look better and have a real advantage over LCDs, and consumers might be willing to pay more for a high-end 3D TV. Barry Young updates us on OLEDs at Samsung, Sony, LG and the rumored Apple device01/20/2010There's a very interesting discussion over at ArsTechnica about OLEDs and Apple's upcoming new device. They are talking to Barry Young from the OLED-Assocation, and he says that no one is making any 10" OLED panels, so it's not possible that Apple are 'hoarding' up all the available panels.... Barry says that Samsung, the most advanced OLED manufacturer, can produce about fourteen 10.1-inch panels per substrate. That means that they could produce around 150,000 10.1" panels a month, but they currently cannot meet their small-panel demand, so it's not likely they are producing any larg displays. LG is even less likely, as they have 10%-15% of Samsung's capacity. LG has a new plant that's coming online later in 2010, but Barry says that it'll be mostly dedicated to their own 15" TV panels. LG would have to hurt their own TV business in order to supply panels to Apple. "The best case is that if Apple announces an AMOLED with a 10.1-inch display, it would have much higher price and have very low volumes," Young concluded. Maybe Apple will announce an OLED device that will only be available much alter in 2010. Barry says that the future for OLEDs look bright. Samsung are preparing a new 8G fab that can produce both LCDs and AMOLEDs. This can be used to 42" OLEDs. Samsung has doubled their capacity in 2009 and will do so again in 2010. The only bad news come from Sony - who has gone back to an R&D phase. |
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