Katarzyna Petru
For years, television manufacturers have been revolving around the same theme: more LED threads, better brightness, perfect black, higher resolution, smaller pixels, and even better color reproduction. And now? A team of Koreans has decided to take a completely different path. And one that could turn the entire audio-video industry upside down.
Instead of improving the picture, the team from Pohang University of Science and Technology (POSTECH) decided to do something unconventional – turn every pixel into... a speaker. Seriously.
Pixel-Based Local Sound OLED – a revolution that sounds
The new technology is called Pixel-Based Local Sound OLED and at first glance, it looks like science fiction. But no – this isn't a concept from CES, but a functioning prototype of a 13-inch OLED panel. Instead of traditional membranes and transducers, scientists used piezoelectric actuators embedded directly within the pixel structure.
In practice, it works like this: each pixel converts an electrical signal into micro-vibrations that generate sound. Directly from the screen. We don’t need any soundbars, there are no holes in the casing, we don't have to deal with directional audio. Sounds? It sounds – and locally, precisely, point-wise. There are no cross-talks, no interference, with the ability to assign a specific sound to a specific location on the screen.
No Compromises: Picture and Sound in One
Importantly, the entire technology does not negatively affect the thickness of the display. The piezoelectric actuators are small enough to fit even in the thinnest OLED screens – so there’s no need to give up the "paper-thin" design. Additionally, the phenomenon of "crosstalk," or interference between sound sources, has been completely eliminated, which was the biggest issue in earlier attempts at similar solutions.
Not just for TVs. Cars, smartphones, tablets…
Although OLED with sound straight from the pixels is just asking to be used in televisions, researchers are aiming much further. Cars are the first direction. Imagine a system where the driver only hears navigation messages, while the passenger relaxes to music. No headphones. No sound barriers. What's next? Monitors that play sound by themselves. Tablets without speakers. Smartphones where the entire surface of the screen is an audio source.
As Professor Su Seok Choi, who led the project, says – this solution could become the new standard in lightweight, mobile, and ultra-slim consumer devices.
And if you're thinking about buying a new television – now is a great time. Incredible prices on OLED TVs! Check out the best models on sale!
Sounds like a revolution? Yes, but for now, let's keep it calm
However, we need to cool the emotions – the technology is still in the prototype phase. It works on a 13-inch screen and looks impressive, but the path to mass production is still long. Challenges? Primarily scalability – it is unclear whether the system will work as effectively on 55- or 77-inch televisions. Additionally, there are issues of production costs and potential malfunctions with such a complex pixel structure.
But if everything can be fine-tuned – we might witness one of the most interesting breakthroughs in home entertainment since the advent of surround sound.
