TCL OLED TVs are coming — and they're about to get a lot cheaper

TCL OLED TVs are coming — and they're well-nigh to go a lot cheaper

(Image credit: TCL)

It seems like everyone wants a piece of the OLED TV business. Rumors initially suggested that Samsung was moving into OLED TVs, and now it looks similar TCL is working on OLED sets of its own.

A recent tidbit from a European press conference with TCL Europe has set off speculation that not only is Goggle box manufacturer TCL working on its own OLED technology, just that we might see the kickoff TCL OLED TVs equally early as 2023.

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The rumor comes from a seemingly offhand comment made during a TCL Europe press conference, as reported by What Howdy-Fi and Tech Radar. While this roughly tracks with other public statements from the company and open up information about investments past the Chinese consumer-electronics maker, it's the showtime fourth dimension nosotros've heard anyone putting a date on when we might brainstorm to see the starting time TCL OLED models.

To detect out more almost TCL's plans regarding OLED TVs, we spoke to Aaron Dew, director of product evolution at TCL North America.

Is TCL preparing to make its ain OLED TVs?

From the commencement, Dew was non comfortable making whatever firm statements about when nosotros might see an OLED TV from TCL. However, he was more than willing to help us learn more near the present land of TCL's OLED development.

"As y'all saw in the news, the comments from Europe this calendar week," said Dew, "we definitely are investing in self-emissive technologies [similar OLED] and we practise encounter a hereafter opportunity for that engineering science."

This is largely in reference to sizable investments by TCL in Japanese visitor JOLED, which is developing a new ink-jet printing process that promises to be cheaper than LG'due south white OLED (WOLED) technology and make OLED TVs easier to industry.

According to a JOLED printing release last yr, TCL bought a 10% stake in the company. Other reports indicate that TCL has invested 20 billion yen ($187 million) into the OLED maker to jointly develop the new OLED technology.

All of this chat is complicated by the fact that TCL's console manufacturer, subsidiary China Star Optoelectronics Technology — oftentimes referred to as just TCL CSOT — is in a separate role of the larger TCL corporate family than TCL N America or TCL Europe.

As a effect, details about technical developments and upcoming manufacturing capabilities might not exist well-known elsewhere in the company. Yet there was no denying that TCL is looking at adding OLED sets to its roster of TVs and is working hard to develop OLED manufacturing capability.

"We are evaluating future display technologies," said Dew. "Nosotros are investing in those time to come brandish technologies, and so we remember there will exist a time for that."

Where does OLED fit into TCL's plans?

Merely an OLED model joining TCL's other smart TVs would be a large shift for the manufacturer, which has largely focused on creating high-quality even so value-priced TVs. OLED technology may exist the elevation dog in terms of picture quality and dissimilarity, but it'south also (for now) a premium production, and makes up a minority of sets in the Tv world.

"If y'all just take a large footstep back," said Dew, "there's two kinds of TVs in the world today: There'south self-emissive OLED TVs and there's LED LCD TVs. And the way the market looks, it's over 97% LED LCD TVs and less than 3% self-emissive white OLED in the world today."

Whatsoever OLED development will run parallel to the existing technologies that TCL is already using and working to amend. Aaron Dew specifically cited mini-LED backlight as the main focus for current TCL TVs, which makes a lot of sense.

TCL introduced the smaller-backlight engineering science back in 2019. Only in 2021 did competitors brainstorm to adopt like mini-LED tech in their own TVs, such as the Samsung Neo QLED line and the LG QNED with Mini-LED , in an effort to catch up with first-class models like the TCL half dozen-Series Roku TV (R635).

"That'south our focus," said Dew, "in terms of any sort of new Idiot box engineering," speaking of that residue betwixt value and operation.

"We were the first to innovate mini LED back in 2019," he added. "Nosotros're continuing to gyre that out and y'all'll see that on more of our TVs, and we'll have more to talk about later on this year."

When will nosotros see the start TCL OLED sets?

But what about the bigger question of when those OLED TVs will arrive? TCL Europe has said that OLED models could show up equally early as 2023, but Dew isn't set up to give any firm dates.

"I'm non gear up to talk most when we'll productize that," he said in response to our questions.

That said, he was more than happy to point out that this sort of investment into R&D was a large part of TCL's success in the final few years.

"That'southward what helped to become us to a acme-two position here in the U.Due south. in terms of Television receiver market share," said Dew. "Largely, we produce everything in-business firm that we distribute and sell to customers. That gives the states groovy power in terms of bringing new technology faster."

"And nosotros go on to invest and you encounter those new investments around things like ink-jet press of OLED materials, which is a little means off, just you see that continued investment."

Given some recent rumors about Samsung buying OLED panels from rival Korean manufacturer LG, I likewise asked if we might ever encounter a TCL OLED Idiot box that used a panel fabricated by another company.

"No," Dew said flatly. "We certainly don't have any plans to exercise annihilation like that, and we don't do that today."

Whatever the future holds for OLED TVs coming from TCL, nosotros tin be pretty sure that TCL will go on to maintain control over its manufacturing and won't be turning to outside sources to provide parts.

Brian Westover is an Editor at Tom's Guide, covering everything from TVs to the latest PCs. Prior to joining Tom's Guide, he wrote for TopTenReviews and PCMag.