Michał Stekla
Samsung has shown data from independent tests that shed new light on the comparison between OLEDs and LCDs. It turns out that OLED and QD-OLED panels can appear up to 1.5 times brighter than traditional LCDs – even though they technically have the same brightness.
Sounds strange? It’s about what’s known as perceived brightness. UL Solutions, an independent laboratory, examined this closely: a 300-nit OLED can seem just as bright as a 500-nit LCD. And in some situations, the advantage of OLED becomes even greater — nearly 3 times. This is all due to how our eyes perceive contrast and black.
Contrast is king: how OLED wins the battle for viewer attention
The main advantage of OLEDs lies in the way they emit light — each pixel lights up independently and can be completely turned off. This results in perfect blacks and significantly higher contrast compared to LCD, where the backlighting operates globally.
It’s this contrast that allows even a moderately bright OLED to seem "brighter" than theoretically stronger LCDs. The human eye simply perceives light better when it contrasts with deep blacks.
Fewer nits, more brightness? OLED proves it.
According to data from UL Solutions testing:
300-nit OLED panel = 510-nit LCD panel
500-nit QD-OLED panel = 767-nit LCD panel
And these are just averages — in some scenarios, the differences are even greater.
These results are good news not just for home cinema enthusiasts. OLEDs can look better while consuming less energy — and that's excellent news for smartphones, car displays, and gaming monitors.
Samsung is already announcing that this technology will reach the next generations of their devices: from phones to tablets and monitors, all the way to televisions. And it looks like this is just the beginning of the changes.
OLED changes the game
If you think that “more nits = better screen” — it’s time to rethink that. By 2025, OLED not only matches LCD but surpasses it in many cases, and without the need for extremely bright backlighting. This is not a revolution — it’s an evolution that you won't want to miss.
Source: www.flatpanelshd.com
