LG Display and Samsung Display are busy plotting the next evolution of OLED displays, and their respective roadmaps include new panel sizes in both 4K and 1440p resolution, with refresh rates of up to 480Hz and ultra-wide aspect ratios also on the horizon.
An internal roadmap obtained by TFTCentral shows that LG Display has a lot of plans to expand the OLED monitor market. Starting in the first quarter of 2024, it will launch a new 34-inch ultrawide curved OLED panel for monitors with 3440x1440 resolution and 240Hz refresh rates. That will be followed immediately after by a 39-inch bendable OLED panel with 3440x1440 resolution and 240Hz. Then, in the third quarter of 2024 it will launch a 31.5-inch OLED monitor display with 4K resolution, a 16:9 aspect ratio and 240Hz refresh rate, rising to 480Hz at 1080p resolution. This particular model could potentially prove to be faster than the best LCD monitors, due to OLED’s superior response time.
Also in Q3 of 2024, LG Display plans to launch a 42-inch 4K OLED panel with 240Hz refresh rate, and a 27-inch OLED model with 1440p resolution and 480Hz refresh rate.
Finally, in the first quarter of 2025, it will launch a new 45-inch ultrawide OLED panel with 5120x2160 resolution and 165Hz refresh rate. There’s also a 27-inch OLED with 4K resolution and 240Hz refresh rate that’s said to be “under consideration”.
TFTCentral is a British publication that has been a fairly reliable source in terms of leaked roadmaps, and its predictions are generally very accurate, though of course none of these plans have yet been confirmed by LG Display. At present, the vast majority of LG Display’s OLED panels are made for televisions, and they have a much lesser presence in monitors, which are still dominated by LCD displays.
In fact, it's LG’s rival Samsung Display that has a stronger presence in OLED monitors, with its QD-OLED technology used in displays made by Samsung Electronics, Dell Alienware, MSI and Philips. It also makes QD-OLED panels for televisions sold by Samsung and Sony.
TFTCentral has less details on Samsung Dislay’s plans, but it does mention three new panels that it’s reportedly considering producing. They include new 31.5-inch and 27-inch OLED panels with 4K resolution and 240Hz refresh rate, a 27-inch OLED panel with 1440p resolution and a 360Hz refresh rate, and a 34-inch ultrawide OLED panel that will have 3440x1440 resolution and 240Hz refresh rate. TFTCentral didn’t offer any details on when production of these products might start, but we’d guess that the company is aiming for a similar 2024/25 timeframe.
Besides the purported roadmaps, TFTCentral said LG Display is looking to increase the brightness of its OLED monitor panels to around 1,300 bits peak brightness and 275 nits in fullscreen.
The majority of the new panels will likely be aimed at gaming monitors, but some of the smaller 27-inch and 32-inch 4K OLED displays could also be used as general purpose monitors, or even small-sized TVs.
Bear in mind that the dates provided by TFTCentral all refer to the start of production, so the products themselves may not arrive in stores until several months after.
