QLED and OLED are two types of technology for screens and televisions that are highly valued for their performance. The main difference between these two technologies is how they work: OLED screens are made up of pixels which generate their own light using an electrical pulse. QLED screens have LEDs that send backlight to the pixels on the screen panel. So, which technology should you choose based on your use?
What is QLED technology?
QLED technology is based on the pixels that make up the color display of screens and televisions. Pixels have their own color code. They constitute the basic structure of all the images that we can see on the screen of televisions, smartphones and PCs. They determine the resolution, contrasts and colors of these images. To “transform” pixels into an image, QLED technology uses blue backlight which is filtered by a layer of nanocrystals called Quantum Dots. QLED technology is an optimized version of LED or LCD screen technologies.
The advantage of QLED technology: Quantum Dots, also called “quantum dots” or “quantum dots”, are associated with backlighting techniques and LCD technologies. The result: the images viewed are clearer and more intense. QLED technology allows you to benefit from more contrasted, bright and intense color rendering. It reveals a fairly impressive wealth of details.
What is OLED technology?
OLED technology is found in television screens, PCs, laptops as well as smartphones and gaming screens. OLED stands for “Organic Light Emitting Diode”. The characteristic of this technology: unlike QLED screens or other image technologies, theOLED display does not use pixel backlighting, because these produce their own light. To achieve this phenomenon, organic light-emitting diodes based on carbon and hydrogen are used.
Another feature: the diodes turn on and off automatically, so you can obtain a bright, deep black as well as more intense contrasts. The contours are sharp, the resolution and contrasts are very high, the colors are brilliant and intense, regardless of the viewing angle. The screen is generally thinner because it does not contain a backlight layer. But as a result, the brightness is also lower.
Very interesting for gamers : OLED screens allow a higher refresh rate than QLED screens, and therefore offer sharper resolution when images follow one another quickly, which is often the case when playing action games with The universe is complex.
QLED vs OLED: the similarities
QLED and OLED technologies are among the best screen technologies today. They offer ultra-high image resolutions of 4K and 8K. They far exceed the capabilities of Full HD screens. If you want to install a Home Cinema at home or are looking for a state-of-the-art PC screen for teleworking, you absolutely must choose a QLED or OLED screen.
QLED vs OLED: the differences
The differences between these two technologies are obvious, especially from a technical point of view: QLED technology is a evolution of LCD technology. It is composed of LED backlighting, a layer of liquid crystals as well as Quantum Dots innovation. On the contrary, OLED technology completely eliminates backlighting thanks to autonomous self-illuminating diodes.
QLED screens are characterized by a high brightness, sharp resolution and brilliant colors. OLED screens offer a absolute black value, higher contrasts and richer colors. OLED technology transmits colors more faithfully than QLED technology. This is ideal, for example, when you need to render a file of illustrations or design created with CMYK and RGB color spaces where the colors must be transmitted to the screen as faithfully as possible.
In addition, OLED screens allow a higher refresh rate. Thanks to the absence of backlighting, thescreen is thinner and lighter in its construction. The disadvantage of the OLED screen: this technology is very sensitive to external influences, such as oxygen or UV rays. Its lifespan is approximately 20,000 hours. On the other hand, the QLED screen is more resistant because its diodes are non-organic. Its lifespan can be up to 100,000 hours.
Do you want to connect two PC screens for greater working comfort? For example, you can take an OLED screen as the main screen and a QLED screen as a secondary screen, depending on your requirements.
QLED vs OLED: comparison table
Here is a comparison table which includes the elements above so that you can more easily compare QLED and OLED technologies with each other:
| QLED | OLED |
|---|---|
| Cheaper than OLED technology | More expensive state-of-the-art screen |
| Uses LED backlighting, LCD layer and Quantum Dots | Uses self-illuminating LEDs that turn on and off |
| Intense contrasts, high definition, high brightness, brilliant colors, rich details | Absolute black, brilliant colors, faithful color reproduction, high definition thanks to a high refresh rate |
| Due to the backlight, the screen is less light | Lighter screen because it does not have a backlight |
| The quality of image values and colors is not always optimal depending on the viewing angle | High image and color quality from any viewing angle |
| Pixels cannot be controlled individually | Pixels are individually controlled, providing better contrast |
| The lifespan of approximately 100,000 hours is significantly longer than that of OLED technology | The lifespan of approximately 20,000 hours is lower than that of QLED technology |
Which screen technology consumes the most electricity?
Energy consumption is an important factor that will influence your purchasing choice. Your power consumption will increase depending on the screen technology you use. As QLED technology works using a continuously lit backlight to display the image, it also consumes more electricity.
OLED technology does not require continuous backlighting, which is why its energy consumption is generally lower. The LEDs turn on and off automatically depending on the image, which promotes lower energy consumption. In principle, it is estimated that QLED displays consume around 15% more electricity than OLED displays.
What are the other screen technologies?
QLED and OLED technologies are the most demanded when purchasing a TV, PC, laptop or smartphone. The reasons for this request are obvious: very high resolution, intense colors and bright images. And even if there are technical differences between QLED and OLED technologies, they are safe values.
However, there are other screen technologies that still exist on the market or are gradually developing. Here they are :
- LED/LCD: The terms LED and LCD are almost synonymous. LCD screens are made of liquid crystals and LED screens contain light-emitting diodes for backlighting. Both work using electrical impulses. As these screens do not contain organic elements, their lifespan is quite high.
- Micro/Mini-LED: Micro-LED displays use light-emitting diodes that can turn on and off autonomously, just like OLED displays. The only difference: they are not made of organic materials but of synthetic ones. They therefore have a much longer lifespan. The Micro-LED screen is considered a serious competitor to the OLED screen.
- Nano-Cell: only the manufacturer LG uses this technology. It is similar to QLED displays in terms of performance and technical characteristics, with an additional Nano-Cell layer.
- QD-OLED: thanks to QD-OLED technology, the Quantum Dots of QLED technology are integrated into OLED technology. The screen has blue light-emitting diodes combined with a layer of red and green Quantum Dots. We therefore no longer need additional color filters. QD-OLED screens should therefore allow much better color vision than OLED screens and also offer greater sharpness, regardless of the viewing angle.
What role do OLED and QLED technologies play for smartphones?
A decisive purchasing criterion for a smartphone: the quality of the screen. Above all, we are looking for good brightness, beautiful colors, intense contrasts and high resolution. Already, most smartphones do not offer QLED technology. The right question to ask would rather be to know if it is a LCD or OLED screen. High-end smartphones from major brands Apple, Samsung or Google generally have OLED screens. As the pixels are self-luminescent, the intensity of colors and contrasts is astonishing. Their visual quality far exceeds that of LCD screens.
When purchasing a cell phone, the term OLED will often appear under another name: AMOLED. AMOLED stands for “Active Matrix Organic Light Emitting Diode”, it is an evolution of OLED technology. “Active Matrix” indicates an active matrix that allows each pixel to be controlled independently of the others. There are even more advanced technologies called “Super AMOLED” and “Super AMOLED Plus”. They promise better light transmission, more intense colors and even higher resolution.
