The Power and Versatility of OLED Technology: Beyond TVs

When it comes to display technology, OLED (Organic Light-Emitting Diode) is often associated with television screens. However, this versatile material has far-reaching applications beyond our living rooms. The display behind me is a prime example of OLED's potential in commercial settings.

This 77-inch curved OLED panel is designed for retail purposes, and its sheer size and shape will undoubtedly make it a common sight in shopping malls and stores across the country. But how does this technology achieve such an impressive display? To answer that, let's examine the differences between OLED and standard LCD displays.

Visualization of LCD Display versus OLED Display

To illustrate the disparity between these two technologies, I'd like to show you a visualization of both. As you can see, an LCD display consists of multiple individual parts. First, there's the cover or bottom panel with LEDs embedded within. These LEDs are then pointed through a reflector plate, followed by a diffuser plate to spread out the light evenly in most modern displays. Additionally, you'll find a quantum dot sheet that alters the color of the light, making it more suitable for color filters. There's also a prism sheet (which could be a polarization sheet) and another diffuser before reaching the LCD panel.

In contrast, OLED panels are remarkably thin and flexible. When viewed alone, they're almost as thin as a piece of paper, with the added benefit of being slightly flexible without compromising the display's integrity. This flexibility allows TV manufacturers to create innovative products that wouldn't be possible with traditional LCDs. For instance, OLED displays can be used to turn into sound-making devices by integrating actuators on the panel itself.

Using OLED for Sound Output

One remarkable example of this versatility is the use of OLED panels as sound-emitting devices. Instead of placing speakers within a display, which would add bulkiness, manufacturers can utilize the display itself to produce sound waves. By placing actuators on the panel and moving them up and down in sync with the sound waves, an impressive audio experience is created.

This demonstration shows how these beads bounce up and down as they respond to the sound waves, resulting in a full-bodied sound that's more direct and clear than traditional speakers. The clarity of dialogue is particularly notable, making this technology ideal for applications where immersive audio is essential.

Transparent OLED Displays: A Game-Changer

Another groundbreaking application of OLED technology is transparent displays. This innovation has been seen in refrigerators and ovens, but its potential extends far beyond those areas. With a traditional TV display type setup, the product behind the screen becomes an integral part of the display itself. In contrast, a completely transparent panel allows for this dimensionality to be maintained while still providing a convincing visual experience.

This technology is becoming increasingly clear as we approach our future displays. It's no longer just about having a great display in your living room; it's about bringing that level of innovation and versatility to other aspects of our lives, like shopping and retail experiences.

In conclusion, OLED technology has opened up new avenues for commercial applications beyond the realm of television screens. From versatile materials to innovative sound output and transparent displays, its potential is vast and exciting. As we move forward, it's essential to keep pushing the boundaries of what this technology can achieve, ensuring that our future displays are not only visually stunning but also functional and engaging.

"WEBVTTKind: captionsLanguage: enthose of you who follow Digital Trends TV reviews hear us talking about OLED all the time OLED TV this OLED TV that but the thing is OLED can be used for more than just watching television in your home the display behind me is a great example of that this is a commercial application of an OLED panel these are 77in OLED panels that have been curved to create this amazing commercial display this is going to change what it's like when you go out to shop you're going to see these things all over the place but how do they do that why is OLED that much different than the standard LCD TV that you're used to seeing around well let me show you this is the best visualization of an LCD display versus an OLED display that I've seen yet you can see that with an LCD display there are tons of individual Parts first you have the cover or the bottom which has the LEDs in it themselves then you have to point that through a reflector plate it then goes through a diffuser plate to spread out all that light in most of today's uh displays you also have a quantum dot sheet that actually changes the nature of the color of the light so it's more perfect for the color filter you've got a prism sheet here which could also be a polarization sheet another diffuser then there is a guide panel and finally you get to the LCD panel now you can sandwich these things together and make it relatively thin but by contrast check out just how thin and OLED panel is if you've got nothing else it's that thin it's almost as thin as a piece of paper now not only that but it's a little bit flexible you can bend it without destroying the display and it's also rigid which allows TV makers to do some pretty spectacular stuff because the OLED display is both flexible and rigid you can do a lot of fun things with it case in point you can actually turn the display into a sound making device so instead of putting speakers inside a display which makes it very bulky you can use the display itself to emit sound what they've done here is placed actuators on the panel itself and turned the display into a speaker you can use multiple actuators to get stereo sound and as you can see in this demonstration it's quite effective what you see visualized by these beads bouncing up and down are sound waves moving the beads up and down it has a very full sound to it it's certainly more direct to your ears than uh say speakers that are firing towards the ground so you have more clarity and it's still a full-bodied sound with a lot of clear dialogue coming at you this I think is the cig of OLED transparent OLED this is something that uh we started to see in some refrigerators uh ovens but here in a traditional TV type display you can imagine all kinds of retail possibilities where the product you're talking about in the display is actually sitting behind the display so there's this weird dimensionality going on here plus I think it's just really really cool that you can get an actually convincing looking display going on on a completely transparent panel I love this stuff because we come come to CES to catch a glimpse of the future and that's exactly what we're seeing here and it's becoming increasingly clear that the future of display isn't just in your living room it's just about everywhere you gothose of you who follow Digital Trends TV reviews hear us talking about OLED all the time OLED TV this OLED TV that but the thing is OLED can be used for more than just watching television in your home the display behind me is a great example of that this is a commercial application of an OLED panel these are 77in OLED panels that have been curved to create this amazing commercial display this is going to change what it's like when you go out to shop you're going to see these things all over the place but how do they do that why is OLED that much different than the standard LCD TV that you're used to seeing around well let me show you this is the best visualization of an LCD display versus an OLED display that I've seen yet you can see that with an LCD display there are tons of individual Parts first you have the cover or the bottom which has the LEDs in it themselves then you have to point that through a reflector plate it then goes through a diffuser plate to spread out all that light in most of today's uh displays you also have a quantum dot sheet that actually changes the nature of the color of the light so it's more perfect for the color filter you've got a prism sheet here which could also be a polarization sheet another diffuser then there is a guide panel and finally you get to the LCD panel now you can sandwich these things together and make it relatively thin but by contrast check out just how thin and OLED panel is if you've got nothing else it's that thin it's almost as thin as a piece of paper now not only that but it's a little bit flexible you can bend it without destroying the display and it's also rigid which allows TV makers to do some pretty spectacular stuff because the OLED display is both flexible and rigid you can do a lot of fun things with it case in point you can actually turn the display into a sound making device so instead of putting speakers inside a display which makes it very bulky you can use the display itself to emit sound what they've done here is placed actuators on the panel itself and turned the display into a speaker you can use multiple actuators to get stereo sound and as you can see in this demonstration it's quite effective what you see visualized by these beads bouncing up and down are sound waves moving the beads up and down it has a very full sound to it it's certainly more direct to your ears than uh say speakers that are firing towards the ground so you have more clarity and it's still a full-bodied sound with a lot of clear dialogue coming at you this I think is the cig of OLED transparent OLED this is something that uh we started to see in some refrigerators uh ovens but here in a traditional TV type display you can imagine all kinds of retail possibilities where the product you're talking about in the display is actually sitting behind the display so there's this weird dimensionality going on here plus I think it's just really really cool that you can get an actually convincing looking display going on on a completely transparent panel I love this stuff because we come come to CES to catch a glimpse of the future and that's exactly what we're seeing here and it's becoming increasingly clear that the future of display isn't just in your living room it's just about everywhere you go\n"