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QD-OLED is an OLED panel that adds a quantum-dot color layer for brighter, purer color than standard OLED.
For the full breakdown, see our best 4K QD-OLED TV guide.
If you’re wondering what QD-OLED TV is, the short version is this: it’s an OLED television that uses blue light and quantum dots to create red and green. That gives you the perfect black levels OLED is known for, plus noticeably higher brightness and color volume than most standard OLED TVs.
Samsung Display is the company behind QD-OLED panels, and the technology’s own specs say it can show 1 billion true colors, hit 126% DCI-P3 color volume, and deliver a 0.03 ms response time. Those are manufacturing claims, but they’re the reason QD-OLED is considered the high-end OLED option.
How QD-OLED Works
QD-OLED works differently from the OLED panels used in many other TVs. Standard OLED TVs typically use a white OLED layer and a color filter, which blocks some light to create red, green, and blue. QD-OLED instead starts with a blue OLED layer and converts part of that blue light into red and green with quantum dots — microscopic semiconductor crystals that emit very precise wavelengths.
Because there’s no light-blocking color filter, QD-OLED can push more brightness out of every pixel while still switching each pixel off for true black. The benefit is most visible in HDR content, where bright highlights sit next to deep shadows.
Color volume is where QD-OLED really stands out. Many TVs can display a wide color gamut at low brightness but lose that coverage when the screen gets brighter. QD-OLED keeps colors saturated in the bright highlights that HDR content relies on.
Which TVs Use QD-OLED Right Now?
In the US market, the two brands to know are Samsung and Sony. Sizes run from 55 to 83 inches on the S95H and 42 to