Hisense has just announced the launch of its first ever 48-inch OLED TV that's set to go on sale in Japan next month. The announcement is an apparent U-turn from a decision made last year, when Hisense said it was ditching OLED technology in favour of LCD. 

In January 2020 it was reported that Hisense, one of the largest TV brands in China, had decided to dump OLED in favour of its “ULED XD” branded dual-layer LCD TVs. At the time it was claimed that the company had made this decision due to the strong picture quality performance and value proposition of ULED versus OLED. 

Whether or not Hisense still believes ULED is superior is not clear, but the launch of its latest TV in Japan means that it has in any case abandoned its plan to abandon OLED. The company says its new 48-inch 4K resolution X8F OLED TV will go on sale in the Land of the Rising Sun next month, before arriving in the U.S. and Europe later in the year. 

The X8F range will also include a 55-inch model, but it’s the 48-inch version that’s more interesting as it means Hisense is one of the few companies to announce an OLED model in the smallest size available this year, along with LG Electronics and Sony.

As for the nuts and bolts of the X8F, it seems to be capable of holding its own with the promise of AI-powered video processing that will deliver high quality pictures, Hisense’s Vidaa 3.0 platform that comes with apps such as Netflix, Amazon Prime, YouTube and Hulu, and support for three high dynamic range formats, including Dolby Vision, HDR10 and HLG. The TV will also boast voice controls through Amazon Alexa and Google Assistant, Hisense said. 

Interested buyers may want to hold back though, as Hisense’s first OLED TV, the Hisense O8B, didn’t quite match the image quality of comparable OLED TVs sold by the likes of LG and Sony. Still, Hisense has had plenty of time to iron out some of those deficiencies with its latest offering, so we're optimistic the X8F will offer a much better performance.  

Hisense said the 48-inch X8F will go on sale in Japan for around £1,240, which means it will likely be one of the most affordable new OLED TVs on the market when it comes to the U.K.