The LG 55EM9600, reputedly the world’s largest OLED TV, has been launched at the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) 2012 in Las Vegas today. LG Electronics has been building up hype about this revolutionary display even one week prior to CES 2012, so naturally the EM9600 is the undisputed star at the company’s press conference (and perhaps even the entire event).
LG 55EM9600 55-inch OLED TV breaks cover at CES 2012 |
The OLED television boasts a screen size of 55 inches, which is hitherto unheard of for this display technology. In terms of physical design, the LG 55EM9600 certainly cannot be faulted: the panel only measures 4mm in depth, and weighs 7.5kg. As if these are not enough, the HDTV is also blessed with a supremely slim bezel which serves to focus the viewer’s eyes towards the picture on screen.
The claimed contrast ratio of the LG EM9600 is 1 billion to 1, which – while sounding hyperinflated even in a world where most manufacturers tend to exaggerate their figures based on the different methodologies used – perhaps gives an indication of the inky blacks that we know OLED technology is capable of. To produce the “most natural colours of any TV set”, the Korean television maker has implemented 4-Colour Pixels (red, green, blue and white) and Colour Refiner (which purportedly preserves off-axis colour consistency) technologies on the 55EM9600.
Given LG’s commitment to passive 3D, it’s hardly surprising to find that the EM9600 is equipped with the firm’s Cinema 3D technology. Although this still requires that users wear glasses for extra-dimensional viewing, the 3D eyewear in question is of the polarized variant, which is typically lighter, cheaper and more convenient (they do not need batteries, synchronisation nor charging) than active-shutter counterparts.
The LG 55EM9600 is expected to become available to buy in the USA and the UK during the second half of this year. No definite price has been set, but a ballpark figure of 8000 US dollars (around £5185) has been bandied about by industry insiders.