Samsung and LG typically fight it out for the title of the best TV, but last month a historic deal indicated that when it comes to OLED TVs, they may start to help each other out. Now, we may have a good idea of when we can see the first fruits of that partnership.
According to Korean news outlet The Elec, Samsung will start to take receipt of LG Display-manufactured OLED panels later this month, which is ahead of the initially reported schedule.
When we reported on the deal back in May 2023, the expectation was that Samsung would not begin purchasing the LG Display OLED panels until next year. The Elec says that this initial shipment may be a trial shipment rather than the true start of the deal. However, the expectation is still that Samsung will eventually debut an OLED TV with an LG Display panel later this year.
As expected, these panels will be 77-inch and 83-inch WOLED displays. WOLED displays are OLED display panels that use a white subpixel in addition to the traditional red, green and blue subpixels found on any TV display. This is the same display technology that LG uses in its OLED TVs — including the LG C2 OLED, which is the best TV we’ve ever tested.
Why would Samsung choose LG WOLED displays?
The benefits of WOLED are that the inclusion of the white subpixel prevents image burn-in, which is a major concern with OLED displays. LG even held a press conference earlier this year, claiming that LG OLED TVs were superior to Sony and Samsung’s QD-OLED TVs that use displays manufactured by Samsung Display.
Samsung, of course, maintains that its QD-OLED displays are superior to LG’s WOLED technology. By forgoing the white subpixel and adding a quantum dot filter, the Samsung Display QD-OLED panels manage to hit more accurate color representation and are better for viewing the TV displays from an angle.
Still, clearly, Samsung has some doubts, as it’s now potentially making as many as two million WOLED TVs in the coming years thanks to this deal. Hopefully, this reporting is accurate and we can actually see a Samsung WOLED TV before the year is out.
But if you can’t wait that long for a WOLED TV, there’s good news. The LG C3 OLED TV is the highly-rated follow-up to the incredible LG C2 OLED, and right now you can get it at Amazon for $400 off — its lowest price ever.
