Sign up or login to join the discussions!

Samuel Axon - Aug 12, 2022 6:15 pm UTC

LG plans to introduce a 20-inch OLED panel by the end of the year, and unlike most other offerings in this size, it will be used in consumer devices.

LG is the leading manufacturer of OLED panels for several other device categories, and the company has been making panels for watches, TVs, and smartphones—but this will be the first time the company will make OLEDs suitable for computer monitors or smaller televisions.

The news comes from South Korean electronics news site The Elec, which reported details from a speech to the Korea Display Industry Association by LG Display Vice President Kang Won-seok.

The executive also said the company is working on OLEDs for mixed reality devices, a new 77-inch transparent OLED size, and bendable OLEDs where the user can adjust the amount of curve on the fly.

If the panels have the same qualities as those that LG makes for televisions, though, this development could be big news in the computer monitor business.

Judging from objective testing by Rtings and other display tech reviewers, LG's OLED TVs far outclass most desktop computer monitors on the market in all sorts of measures of picture quality, from contrast to gray uniformity. And recent LG OLEDs have competitive response times and refresh rates that make them good gaming displays, too.

Currently, most of the market for high-end computer monitors is either focused on color accuracy for creative professionals or ultra-fast response times and refresh rates for dedicated gamers—often at the expense of picture quality, in the latter case. The picture quality and consistency of most computer monitors are quite poor by TV and smartphone display standards.

For example, most computer monitors use LED technology but lack the local dimming tech in high-end LED TVs. This means that contrast ratios are comparatively low, and backlight bleed is a common problem. OLED sidesteps these issues. Further, PC gamers playing on desktop monitors usually miss out on the full effects of HDR (if it's even supported), as few computer monitors can deliver the bright highlights that LED or OLED TVs can.

There have been some OLED monitors in laptops, and the past year has started to see some OLED desktop displays from others besides LG. The early signs are promising. As of this year, LG ships a 42-inch version of its OLED TV that has been popular with some high-end PC gamers. But that's still too large to be practical for many people looking for a screen to use in that context.

Compromises may be made to manufacture the panels in these sizes, though, so we'll have to wait until (likely) sometime next year to see what we're getting. And this could just be the beginning. While 20-inch OLED panels would be suitable for some users, many will be holding out for larges sizes like 23, 24, or 27 inches.

You must login or create an account to comment.

Join the Ars Orbital Transmission mailing list to get weekly updates delivered to your inbox.

CNMN Collection WIRED Media Group © 2022 Condé Nast. All rights reserved. Use of and/or registration on any portion of this site constitutes acceptance of our User Agreement (updated 1/1/20) and Privacy Policy and Cookie Statement (updated 1/1/20) and Ars Technica Addendum (effective 8/21/2018). Ars may earn compensation on sales from links on this site. Read our affiliate link policy. Your California Privacy Rights | Do Not Sell My Personal Information The material on this site may not be reproduced, distributed, transmitted, cached or otherwise used, except with the prior written permission of Condé Nast. Ad Choices