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Samsung is focusing on OLED TVs, spinning off its LCD division as a new corporation on 1 April, Bloomberg reports, with the Samsung board approving the plan. Though it still needs shareholder approval, according to the BBC. The first of April is the same day Sony gets a new boss — let’s hope it’s not all some elaborate April Fool’s Day joke.
So what does this mean for us telly addicts? Thinner sets, with brighter pictures. And the prices should come down a bit too.
The new company is provisionally named Samsung Display Company, with paid-in capital of 750bn won (£421m). No doubt Samsung has made the move because its LCD business had an operating loss of 750bn won last year, with global TV sales slowing.
Samsung is the world’s biggest maker of TVs and flatscreens, so is feeling the pinch more than anyone.
It’s concentrating on OLED to keep its edge over the competition. Luke had a hands-on with its Super OLED TV at CES, and can confirm it’s pretty super indeed. It’s extremely slim, with the image appearing to float in mid-air. The 55-inch screen is also far bigger than sets previously announced, hinting that OLED is about to become mainstream, and hence that the price will come down. Samsung’s LED TVs are still mighty impressive, so I can’t wait to see what an OLED set can do.
Last week we brought you news Samsung’s OLED set will arrive in the UK in the second half of the year, not the spring as originally thought. LG has also announced a 55-inch OLED TV, so expect competition to be fierce.
Will its concentration on thinness and superior image quality be enough to stop the 400-tonne juggernaut that is the Apple TV? Samsung reckons picture quality is far more important than Internet features and apps, but Luke’s not so sure.
What do you think of OLED TVs? Let me know your thoughts in the comments below, or over on our Facebook page.
