LG launches QNED TV to rival Samsung in premium TV market

LG Electronics Inc. has launched new flashy flagship TV models, with which the South Korean home electronics giant aims to compete with its bigger rival Samsung Electronics Co. in the premium TV segment.

LG’s Mini LED TVs, under the QNED brand, are set to hit the shelves in North America this week, and will afterward be available in other major markets, including Europe and Japan, the company said on Wednesday.

In the Korean market, the latest products will be available in mid-July.

LG said it is unveiling a total of seven models of its first Mini LED TV that comes in 4K and a higher resolution 8K quality with three screen sizes – 65, 75 and 86 inches.

The 8K QNED Mini LED TV model will sell between 5.09 million won and 16.8 million won ($4,508-$14,880) in the Korean market, while the 4K model has a price tag of 3.19 million-8.2 million won.

Unveiled at this year’s Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in January, LG’s QNED Mini LED TV is its first TV product that combines the benefits of its NanoCell technology with quantum dots for improved color, contrast and brightness, according to the company.

Mini LEDs offer a more effective and efficient way of backlighting the LCD pixels of a TV screen.

LG said its 86-inch 8K model has almost 30,000 Mini LEDs and 2,500 dimming zones, offering enhanced contrast and brightness compared to existing LCD TVs.

TECHNOLOGY SHOWCASE

LG hopes its Mini LED TVs will increase its presence in the premium TV market where crosstown rival Samsung Electronics is the dominant player.

The two Korean home appliance giants are the world’s two largest TV makers.

According to market researcher Omdia, Samsung is the top player in the global TV market with a 32.9% share, followed by LG at 19.2%.

On several occasions, the two companies have competitively showcased their technology with new TV models.

In March, Samsung already released its Mini LED TV, dubbed the Neo QLED, and is enjoying dominance in the fast-growing segment.

Quantum LED or QLED TVs use tiny LED chips that generally range from 100 to 200 micrometers in terms of backlighting for enhanced resolution and clarity.

According to the company, Samsung’s Neo QLED replaces the hundreds of LED diodes used in traditional panels with thousands of much smaller equivalents – up to 40 times smaller.

CONFUSING, SIMILAR-SOUNDING BRAND NAMES

In the meantime, Samsung and LG have clashed over the two confusing, similar-sounding brand names – QLED and QNED.

LG’S QNED brand is the same as the name of the next-generation product under development by Samsung Display Co.

While LG’s QNED stands for Quantum-dot NanoCell LED, Samsung’s QNED is an abbreviation of quantum nano-emitting diode, which describes the characteristics of a technology being developed by global display makers.

Both companies have applied to register QNED as their trademark with the Korean Intellectual Property Office.

The two companies also clashed over the name QLED in 2019, filing complaints against each other with Korea’s Fair Trade Commission.

But they dropped the complaints in the face of strong backlash from local consumers in 2020.

Write to Shin-Young Park at nyusos@hankyung.com
In-Soo Nam edited this article.