TCL has joined Samsung Electronics and LG Electronics in the race to bring MicroLED display technology to the masses with the launch of the TCL X11H Max. It’s the company’s first ever MicroLED TV, and it also happens to be the largest such consumer model of its kind, surpassing its competitors in terms of size by a hefty margin.
The company is launching the 163-inch TCL X11H Max MicroLED TV exclusively in China for now, and it will cost 800,000 yuan, or around £86,000 / $110,000.
It’s at this point we must explain that MicroLED is a completely different technology to the more familiar Mini-LED TVs that have become mainstays of most TV brands’ premium lineups these days.
Mini-LED TVs such as Samsung’s higher-end Neo QLED models are made up of LEDs that are much smaller than the ones used in regular LCD TVs. This means that more of them can be squeezed into a single display, enabling more nuanced local dimming controls. The result is superior contrast and a lot less unwanted light, and the best Mini-LED TVs with the most contrast zones are very close to OLED in terms of picture quality, with higher brightness.
MicroLED takes things further. The micro-LEDs are much smaller even than the Mini-LEDs, and they’re also self-emissive like OLED pixels, so there’s no backlight needed. They can also go much brighter than OLED, matching the levels of Mini-LED while delivering superior contrast compared to OLED.
As such, MicroLED has long been hailed as the next generation of TV displays. In the case of the TCL X11H Max MicroLED TV, it comes with a staggering 25 million micro-LEDs, and claims to deliver a peak brightness of 10,000 nits, which is brighter than any other commercially available TV we’re aware of. TCL says it also boasts a “nanosecond level” response rate that’s superior to the best OLED TVs, which come in at around 0.03ms.
TCL said the MicroLED panel has an expected lifespan of up to 100,000 hours, which should ensure it keeps up its performance for quite a few years before showing any signs of wear and tear.
Of course, the eye-watering price tag means the TCL X11H Max is unlikely to appeal to anyone except for those with winning lottery tickets and seven-figure salaries, but that’s not to say it isn’t competitive. In fact, it’s cheaper than rival MicroLED TVs on the market. For instance, Samsung’s The Wall TV costs around £121,000, despite being much smaller at just 110-inches, while LG’s MicroLED is also smaller at just 136-inches, but comes with a £190,000 price tag. Realistically, very few consumers will be able to afford any of these TVs, but for those who are able to consider such an investment, the TCL X11H Max appears to offer the greatest value.
MicroLED TVs are expensive, but today’s announcement does at least appear to be an encouraging step, and it brings us closer to the day when the technology may finally start to become a little more mainstream. TCL is generally much more focused on building affordable, yet premium quality TVs than its rivals, and its entry into this new segment therefore bodes well for the future.
