The new display features LED backlighting with what’s being called “local dimming”. This allows the display to dynamically adjust the brightness of the LED backlights in sections, to produce much higher than normal contrast ratios. According to LG, the contrast ratio could be as high as 1,000,000 to 1. The set also features full 1080p native resolution and a super-wide color gamut of 105%.

While the display is still a prototype, I wouldn’t be surprised to see some of these features in retail sets within the next 12 to 18 months.

[via AVING]

The 27-inch prototype’s organic light emitting diode panel also features a wider than NTSC color gamut and full 1080p resolution. While I’d be surprised if anyone has lab equipment that could even affirm Sony’s contrast ratio claims, I’m still taken aback by the quality of the image. Since OLEDs actually directly emit light, they can theoretically display much richer colors than backlit displays like LCDs.

Of course, we’re still quite a way off from seeing large OLED displays in real world applications, due to the typically short life span of the organic compounds used in their manufacture. For instance, the blue component of OLED displays typically only lasts for about 5,000 hours (about 1/10th the life of a typical plasma screen.) Recent advances have made some strides in improving the lifespan to as high as 20,000 hours, so there is hope for the future of OLED as a display technology.

[via Engadget]