Samsung to boost premium TV lineup with 77-inch QD-OLED

Samsung Electronics Co. is set to launch a 77-inch quantum dot organic light emitting diode (QD-OLED) TV in South Korea, its largest-ever premium TV model to be unveiled at home.

Alongside the ultra-large TV model, its 55-inch and 65-inch QD-OLED TVs will be making their domestic debut as well. From Feb. 21 Samsung will begin receiving pre-orders for the two most popular-sized TVs in the country.

They will become Samsung’s first upgrades of OLED TVs in Korea since the company launched a 55-inch OLED TV model in 2013. Years later, it pulled out of the market due to low profit margins.

By contrast, LG Electronics Inc. simultaneously entered the OLED TV market in 2013 and has since been ramping up OLED TV production to command 60% of OLED TV orders worldwide.

At CES 2023 last month, Samsung showcased the 77-inch TV model and began receiving pre-orders in the US.

Its QD-OLED TVs will intensify competition with its archrival LG Electronics in the premium TV market. Last year, LG unveiled the world’s largest 97-inch OLED TV, a move aimed at consolidating its leadership in the large-size premium segment.

LG has now completed the full lineup of its OLED TVs from the world’s smallest 42-inch model to the largest 97-inch TV.

Particularly, in the 70-inch and large-size segment, LG has about 10 models. A TV with a 75-inch screen or bigger is classified as an ultra-large model.

Samsung’s 77-inch QD-OLED TV has recently passed the conformity assessment test conducted by a state-run agency, according to an electronics industry official.

The test measures whether broadcasting and communications equipment satisfy the necessary technological conditions, in accordance with the Radio Waves Act.

Samsung's 55-inch and 65-inch QD-OLED TVs were already released in Southeast Asia and other overseas markets in March.

BEYOND NEO-QLED

Samsung’s premium TV lineups have been composed primarily of Neo-QLED TVs based on liquid crystal displays, which are deemed suitable for gamers.

Now Samsung seems to see QD-OLED TVs as the magic bullet to help it tide over the TV industry slump.

The improved production yield of TV panels by Samsung Display Co. has also emboldened Samsung to launch QD-OLED TVs.

Samsung Display is understood to have boosted its QD-OLED panel production yield to 90% as of end-2022, just one year after it began production.

Earlier this month, industry officials said that Samsung Group Chairman Jay Y. Lee was soon expected to announce an extra investment in its QD-OLED business. 

QD-OLED is based on the brightness and colors of quantum dot technology that emits light by itself. It uses blue as a light source.

By comparison, LG’s OLED TVs are equipped with white OLED panels, produced by LG Display Co., which use white as a light source.

Down the road, industry watchers said Samsung might join hands with LG Display for OLED panel supply.

LG Display produces much more volume of OLED panels than Samsung Display.

In 2019, Samsung announced a 13 trillion won ($10.3 billion) investment in the QD-OLED business through 2025. Of the investment, about 3 trillion won has so far been spent on facility upgrades.

The QD-OLED TV market is forecast to expand to 620,000 units this year and 2 million units by 2026, versus 440,000 units in 2022, according to market tracker Omdia. 

Write to Sung-Soo Bae at baebae@hankyung.com

Yeonhee Kim edited this article.