Review-clarification: what is the difference between AMOLED displays and IPS. HD Super Amoled - new generation screens

Two things prompted me to create this article: numerous speculations by marketers and specialized journalists on the topic of screens; and a bunch of absolutely identical comment threads under smartphone reviews with absolutely identical discussions about which matrices are better. Usually, the hottest is under the reviews of Chinese phones with OLED screens. I'm tired of fighting windmills, communicating with each reader individually, in this article I decided to dot the i's and dispel numerous myths about modern screens, looking ahead I will say that the emphasis will be on the opposition between IPS and AMOLED matrices. Most likely, most of you will not see anything new in what you have written, you will not receive sacred knowledge here, as well as tearing off the veils. I will talk about the obvious things that neither bloggers nor journalists want to talk about. The guide is designed for adequate thinking people, convinced fanatics can go about their business.

Definition of the term "screen"

Before getting to the point, you need to define the term screen and clarify its functionality. Wikipedia tells us that a screen or display is an electronic device designed to display information visually. If we try to give a less concise and more modern definition of a screen in terms of functional purpose and with an emphasis on consumer properties, then it will turn out something like this: the screen is a device whose task is to display all kinds of content and the user interface of operating systems and applications as accurately and in detail as possible. as the authors intended. Physical resolution is responsible for the “maximum detail”, otherwise: the number of the smallest screen elements (picture's elements) or just pixels (pixels), the higher the resolution, the better, ideally it should be infinitely large. For “as accurate as possible” such parameters as: color accuracy and contrast or the ratio of the lightest and darkest point on the screen are responsible. Secondary parameters that do not directly affect either the accuracy or the detail of the information display, but affect the consumer properties of the screen, include: maximum brightness, picture distortion when you deviate from the perpendicular view, reflection coefficient, picture refresh rate, response time, energy efficiency and some others ... Standing apart is such a parameter as color gamut - the most important parameter for professional monitors and practically meaningless for devices intended for content consumption. But it is the color gamut that has been the subject of a lot of speculation on the part of mobile gadget manufacturers in recent years. Let's clear up this muddy topic before moving on.

What is gamut and why is it the subject of much speculation

You need to start with the fact that any image when captured and saved to the memory of a photo or video camera is encoded. Artificially created pictures and clips, as well as parts of the graphical user interface of operating systems and applications, are encoded in a similar way initially. In both cases, color information is represented using a color model - a special mathematical tool for describing color using numbers or, to be precise, coordinates. The most common is the three-dimensional RGB model, in which each color is described by a set of three coordinates responsible for one of the colors: red, green and blue, the displayed hue depends on the brightness ratio of each component. Modern screens are capable of displaying only a part of the spectrum of colors and shades visible to humans, the color gamut literally means how large this “part” is. Due to this limitation, a person is forced to create standards for representing the color spectrum based on the capabilities of existing screens. So in 1996, to unify the use of the RGB model in monitors and printing, HP and Microsoft developed the sRGB standard, which used the primary colors described by the BT.709 standard that was widespread on television and gamma correction designed for monitors with a cathode ray tube. It is important to understand that such unification allows, albeit with some reservations, to ensure that the creator and the consumer of content on their screens will see approximately the same thing. Subsequently, the sRGB standard has become widespread in all areas of content production, including the creation of Internet sites. Of course, there are other standards for representing the color spectrum, for example Adobe RGB, the color gamut of which is much wider, but today the vast majority of content is encoded in accordance with sRGB.

What happens if sRGB content is viewed on a wider gamut screen without adaptation? The sRGB space coordinates will be mapped to the color space coordinate system of such a screen, as a result of which the colors will appear more saturated than they actually are, in some cases the shades will be distorted so much that orange turns red, lime green, and cyan blue. Conversely, if content with a wider color gamut is viewed on an sRGB screen, shifting the coordinates will cause colors to appear less saturated than they should be.

We all know that the screens of most modern flagship smartphones have an extended color gamut relative to sRGB, how does this affect their consumer properties? If it is an android smartphone or tablet, then there are three options. In the best case, the shell settings will have preset color profiles, among which there is one that brings the space to the sRGB standard, for example MIUI or the shell from Samsung. But, even in this case, the application of profiles “on the fly” is not possible, and the user will have to choose between extended color gamut and correct color reproduction. The second option is when the system does not have built-in profiles, but in the developer settings you can activate sRGB mode, for example, this can be done on Google Pixel and OnePlus 3T smartphones. Unfortunately, the operating system's graphical interface becomes faded when sRGB is activated, as it is encoded according to the color gamut of their screens. In the third worst case, the user will not find any profiles in the system and will not receive any choice, respectively, he will only have to enjoy oversaturated colors. But in personal computers on Windows and MacOS there is no such problem, since both systems not only support color profiles, but can also “on the fly” convert colors from one space to another, that is, regardless of what content and on what screen will be displayed, the user, with some reservations, will see the colors as the author intended. IOS has a similar color profile management system. Manufacturers, whether for the sake of beautiful numbers on the specifications page, or just to keep it, continue to install screens with extended color gamut in the flagship models of IPS and OLED, despite the fact that there is no need for this, since 99% of the content complies with the sRGB standard and the situation is unlikely to change radically in the near future. The tasks that such screens can perform in devices created for the consumption of content simply do not exist. All of this would make some sense if Google added color profile management to Android, as Apple did, but at least in 2017 we won't see it. The irony is that the problem was created from scratch, and no one is in a hurry to solve it.

Liquid crystal screen: working principle; Advantages and disadvantages

Twenty years ago, screens based on a cathode-ray tube were installed in most monitors and televisions, soon they were replaced by liquid crystal screens or LCD (liquid crystal display), which over time received several branches of development and today there are three technologies for the production of liquid crystal matrices screens: TN, MVA and IPS, the latter, due to a successful combination of advantages and disadvantages, has become dominant in the segment of mobile technology. The principle of LCD operation is simple, depending on the production technology, some details may vary, but a typical matrix includes a backlight lamp and six other layers. First behind the lamp is a vertical filter that polarizes the light accordingly. It is followed by two layers of electrodes with a layer of liquid crystals located between them, the voltage applied to the electrodes orientates the crystals and they refract the light so that it passes or does not pass through the next layer - a horizontal polarizing filter. The last is the color filter - red, green or blue. Liquid crystal screens are lighter, more compact and more energy efficient than their predecessors, but they also have a number of serious drawbacks, in particular, low contrast and black depth, even potentially limited color gamut, which depends on the imperfection of backlight lamps. In addition, brightness and contrast performance may deteriorate if the screen is not viewed at a right angle.

OLED Screen: Advantages, Disadvantages, PWM, Pentile

Relatively recently, LCD has a serious competitor - these are active matrix OLED screens or AMOLEDs. Such screens are fundamentally different from LCDs in that the light source in them is not a backlight, but each subpixel separately, which gives AMOLED many advantages over liquid crystal screens, the main of which are: almost infinite contrast; less power consumption when displaying images with a predominance of dark tones; potentially wider color gamut; and smaller dimensions. The first AMOLED screens, in addition to advantages, had significant disadvantages, including: inaccurate color reproduction; fast burning out of LEDs; high power consumption when displaying images with a predominance of light tones; flickering due to pulse width modulation; and most importantly, the high cost of production. Over time, most of the shortcomings were overcome or minimized, except for PWM, which is the Achilles heel of technology to this day. Pulse Width Modulation or PWM is one way to adjust the brightness of LEDs, the side effect of which is that the screen flickers at some frequency. Most people are not susceptible to this kind of flickering, but for some users, PWM can cause rapid eye fatigue and even headaches. It is important to note that the flickering effect is completely absent at brightness values ​​close to maximum and begins to appear at a brightness level of 80% and below.

It is impossible to ignore the topic with the organization of subpixels in OLED screens, the fact is that in most AMOLED matrices, subpixels are arranged according to the RGBG scheme, when a pixel does not consist of three subpixels as in a typical LCD screen, but of four: red, blue and two green, this scheme is also called Pentile. The manufacturer (Samsung) considers the physical resolution of such screens to be exactly two times less by the number of green subpixels, red and blue subpixels in the matrix. Obviously, you need at least three full subpixels to get a hue. Thus, the effective resolution of such screens is not equal to the nominal resolution specified in the official specification. For example, for a QHD screen, the nominal resolution is 2560 * 1440 pixels, the resolution based on the number of red and blue subpixels will be approximately 1811 * 1018:

The effective resolution of such a matrix, taking into account the clever interpolation algorithms embedded in the screen controller, is somewhere between 1811 * 1018 and 2560 * 1440, we can assume that it corresponds to the FullHD resolution in RGB matrices. It may very well be that it is for such a match that Samsung has chosen QHD resolution for its flagship smartphones for many years in a row.

A detailed comparison of IPS and AMOLED on the example of the screens of smartphones iPhone 7 and Galaxy S8

Now after we have learned all about the characteristics of screens and the features of different types of matrices, we can move on to the main question: which technology is better? I am sure that it is correct to try to answer this question by comparing the best AMOLED and IPS matrices available today, namely the screens of the Samsung Galaxy S8 and Apple iPhone 7 smartphones. Since I have not yet acquired test equipment, I will analyze the test results taken from an authoritative resource. Let's start with the resolution, the Galaxy S8's screen is 2960 * 1440 pixels, the guaranteed effective resolution will be 2094 * 1018, and the guaranteed effective pixel density is 403 per inch. The iPhone 7 Plus has a nominal effective resolution of 1920 * 1080, and an effective pixel density of 401 per inch. There is an obvious preponderance in favor of the screen from the Korean vendor. The resolution of both screens is enough for everyday use and not enough for comfortable operation with virtual reality helmets. Moving on to accuracy, the Galaxy S8's contrast ratio is nearly infinite. The iPhone 7 has a declared contrast ratio of 1400: 1, the actual one is slightly higher - 1700: 1, this contrast is more than enough for comfortable viewing of content. It turns out that the screen of the Galaxy S8 is ahead in this parameter as well. In terms of color accuracy, both smartphones showed virtually the same results; color errors in the Galaxy S8 and iPhone 7 can be safely ignored. You can see the most important secondary characteristics in my opinion below:

As for the color gamut, then the iPhone 7 is ahead, since it can display the colors of the DCI-P3 space or 126% of the sRGB field, while the user does not need to sacrifice color reproduction, the content is displayed based on the color profile embedded in it. The Galaxy S8's screen has an even wider color gamut - about 142% of the sRGB field, but does not have color profile management, driving the user into a corner, that is, in Basic mode, which corresponds to 100% of the sRGB field.

So what's the bottom line? If we consider screen technologies in isolation from the final product, then AMOLED today surpasses IPS in almost everything, although it still has problems with PWM and high power consumption. There is no doubt that OLEDs are the future. Unfortunately, due to the limitations of Android, their full potential has not yet been revealed. When comparing ready-made solutions in the face of Galaxy S8 and iPhone 7, it is obvious that the latter is slightly superior due to honest DCI-P3 and other reference parameters. I want to warn you against projecting the results of the above comparison on absolutely all IPS and AMOLED screens. There are a lot of good, average and bad matrices on the market, and each case needs to be dealt with separately. In this we will be helped by Internet publications focused on technical detail and reliability, to such publications I would include the already mentioned anandtech.com and some other sites from Russian-language sites - ixbt.com.

Perhaps you shouldn't take the consumer properties of screens too seriously, because the factor of subjective perception is almost always superimposed on objective information. For example, in Southeast Asia there are a lot of people who like unnatural oversaturated colors, in our country there are also a lot of such people. On the other hand, broadcasting information poured into the ears of marketers in numerous discussions under reviews on YouTube is at least strange. In the end, I'll be Cap and give a couple of banal advice: don't stop thinking and be critical of any information you get from brand representatives and the media, be able to analyze data and check facts, or just read resources and watch bloggers you can trust.

Which technology is better - IPS or Amoled? Let's talk about the advantages and disadvantages of screens. How to make the right choice?

There was a time when the Samsung company loudly announced its Amoled technology, calling it almost the pinnacle in the production of matrices. Initially, Amoled screens were used in TVs, then the technology was inherited by the brand's smartphones.

AMOLED displays are not liked for an unnatural picture, excessively high contrast, saturated colors.

At this moment, IPS screens with their clarity and natural picture appear on the market. Which is better - IPS or Amoled, and which display is right for you.

Advantages and disadvantages of IPS and AMOLED

Both technologies have a lot of them, it is a fact. Let's start with Amoled.

AMOLED – Active Matrix Organic Light Emitting Diode... The technology provides maximum screen brightness and high image contrast, excellent glare suppression in bright daylight / sunlight / lamp light. At the same time, the screen itself consumes little energy, since the pixels are activated only at the right time, while in IPS, all the pixels are constantly active when the screen is turned on.

Disadvantages of Amoled:

• The high cost of production, which significantly increases the price of a smartphone;
• High vulnerability to mechanical damage;
• Fading of colors is observed over time.

What is IPS? Here, too, everything is very ambiguous. In-Plane Switching technology was created as an ideological successor of TFT - a frankly outdated technology that does not give a juicy picture, or good responsiveness, or wide viewing angles.

Having got rid of these shortcomings, IPS has become a real godsend. The picture is clear, dynamic, deep and rich. But most importantly, the colors have become truly realistic. Amoled, with its oversaturated color palette, loses a lot in this regard. Although, this is also a matter of taste. The picture is clear, the viewing angles are excellent - everything is gorgeous.

Disadvantages of IPS:

• Active energy consumption;
• Smartphones with IPS screens are slightly thicker than their Amoled counterparts;
• IPS requires more powerful backlighting;
• Slow matrix response (only the most picky users will be able to tell the difference);
• Pixel grid visibility.

AMOLED vs IPS - which one to choose?

If you are faced with a choice - to buy a smartphone with an IPS or Amoled screen, start from exactly how you will use it and what you generally expect from the screen. Want natural colors and generally good color reproduction? Choose IPS. Do you want the battery to last longer, and the picture to please with saturation and depth? Amoled for you.

At the same time, everyone should remember that you are not buying a TV, but a smartphone. The average user may not notice much difference between these technologies. And, perhaps, the best advice in choosing is to just look what you like best visually. Well, if you buy a phone for several years, then it's better to take it with an IPS-matrix. The faded colors on Amoled are clearly not to your liking. Although, again, you may not even notice them.

The display is one of the most important parts of a smartphone that we most often pay attention to when using it. True, not when buying, it's so easy to get lost in the variety of types of matrices and the listing of screen resolutions. That is why we will tell you about the types of displays and their resolutions. The smartphone market offers a huge variety of display matrices - TFT, IPS, AMOLED and others. We will focus on the most important ones.

TFT is a display based on thin film transistors. This technology was invented back in 1959 and has already become covered with dust and cobwebs. TFT displays no longer meet all the necessary quality criteria for screens and are installed only in budget smartphones. Now TFT is inferior to IPS and OLED in color rendition and contrast.

However, they have one advantage - a high (1 ms) response time. Although the average user does not see the difference between 1 and 3 or 5-7 ms, that finally buries the technology.

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IPS (In-Plane Switching) is a technology that also evolved from LCD displays. Unlike the same TFT (hopefully, you are not confused in terms yet?), IPS has a higher contrast and color rendering indices, the viewing angle is also wider and the power consumption is reduced. However, IPS is criticized for oversaturation of color and insufficient saturation of the entire picture.

At the moment, IPS is perhaps the most popular technology in the creation of smartphones and tablets.

Retina is the marketing name for the above-described IPS technology invented by Apple. Displays of Cupertinos are distinguished by a high pixel density (about 300 per inch), which makes them practically indistinguishable on the matrix for the human eye.

In 2012, the company began introducing Retina displays to MacBook Pro laptops, and then new screens appeared in smartphones.

OLED and AMOLED

Organic light emitting diodes (Organic Light Emitting Diode) are widely used in the production of plasma panels, smartphones and tablets. Such displays are composed of thin sheets of electroluminescent material that produce their own light. The advantages of OLED over older technologies are lighter weight, no need for backlighting, increased viewing angle, brightness and contrast.

The main disadvantages of the technology are their high cost and short service life. Unfortunately, even in top-end flagships, OLED displays fade and fade after 2-3 years of use.

AMOLED (Active Matrix Organic Light-Emitting Diode) or Super AMOLED are the marketing names for LED panels by Samsung. In order not to boggle your head with unnecessary facts, just remember that these displays are more energy efficient and more expensive. The average eye won't tell the difference between AMOLED and OLED.

Display resolution

No matter how high-quality the display matrix is, a lot depends on its resolution. Resolution shows how many pixels are along the length and width of the display. The higher the resolution, the denser the pixels are on the sensor (PPI). We will tell you what resolution displays are currently on the market for mobile devices.

HD (1280 x 720 pixels)

The base resolution for smartphones, as a rule, is no longer lower than the indicator. All budget smartphones are equipped with HD displays, the PPI indicator in such devices fluctuates around 300 dpi. According to experts, the lower pixel density, our eyes can already see clearly.

Full HD (1920 x 1080 pixels)

A metric often common in sub-flags. For example, on smartphones with a 5-inch display, the PPI already hovers around 440 dpi. Full HD screens are equipped, for example, the flagships of 2016 OnePlus 3 and OnePlus 3T.

Quad HD (2560 x 1440 pixels)

Going further, with Quad HD, the pixel density on a 5.5-inch screen (a very popular option) rises to 538 dpi. For Full HD, for example, this figure will be only 400 dpi. In order not to get confused, you need to remember that Quad HD is often called 2K.

Ultra HD (4096 x 3840 pixels)

Highest display resolution available on the smartphone market today. Ultra HD resolution is often referred to as 4K. For example, the Sony Xperia Z5 Premium has a 5.5-inch display at 806 ppi - nearly three times that of HD panels.

Which display is better?

It is difficult to answer, because everyone chooses a smartphone based on their requirements and tasks. Objectively speaking, in most cases a flagship with a Super AMOLED display and a 2K resolution will display a picture much better than smartphones with an IPS matrix and Full HD resolution. However, there are nuances.

For example, there is no point in overpaying for Super AMOLED if there is a more affordable smartphone with an OLED display nearby - you won't notice the difference, but you will lose money in money. Or it's crazy to take a smartphone with an IPS display and HD resolution, and then wait for it to display realistic photos taken with a professional camera. In any case, if you are serious about buying a smartphone and you have the opportunity to touch it in your hands before buying, then do so. And, best of all, take two or three applicants for a purchase in your hands, turn them on and compare "head to head."

AMOLED- active matrix on organic light-emitting diodes ( Active Matrix Organic Light-Emitting Diode). The essence of the technology boils down to the use of organic light-emitting diodes as a source for building a picture on the surface of an active matrix, and thin-film TFT transistors that control these LEDs.If we simplify as much as possible, then AMOLED technology is a layer cake, the bottom layer of which is an active matrix, followed by a layer of organic light-emitting diodes and a layer of control transistors. Interestingly, for each LED there is a personal transistor, which, by changing the electrical potential, causes the LED to change color gamut and saturation. This principle of operation allows you to achieve high definition and contrast of the picture.

Advantages of AMOLED displays over LCDs

• Relative power saving, power consumption depends on the brightness of the picture, the darker the picture, the less power the AMOLED display consumes.
• 32% wider color gamut than Super IPS LCD.
• The matrix response rate is 0.01 ms. For comparison, a matrix made using TN technology has a response rate of 2 ms.
• The viewing angles horizontally and vertically are 180 degrees, while maintaining full brightness, clarity and contrast.
• Smaller display thickness
• Maximum contrast level.

Advantages of AMOLED displays over plasma panels

• Compact size
• Low power consumption
• High brightness

Disadvantages of AMOLED displays over LCDs

• The lifespan of organic LEDs decreases with frequent viewing of bright pictures, due to the fragility of one of the phosphors, in particular blue. It should be noted that the developers are constantly looking for new sources of this product, and now the blue phosphor is able to work up to 17,000 hours without losing signal quality.
• The high cost of manufacturing AMOLED displays.
• Inverse relationship of time-brightness indicators. The average service life of such displays is 7-8 years.

Disadvantages of AMOLED displays over plasma displays

• AMOLED technology does not allow you to create large displays for a reasonable price.
• Color imbalance, due to the fact that each LED has its own brightness, it is necessary to create matrices with an uneven arrangement of LED subpixels to achieve color balance.
• UV sensitivity.
• Unreliability of connections inside the screen (even the slightest break or crack is enough - and the screen does not show completely).
• The slightest depressurization between the layers of the display is enough - and the display begins to fade from this point. (one or two days is enough for the display to stop showing at all).

Comparison of AMOLED and Super AMOLED technology

Super AMOLED (Super Active Matrix Organic Light-Emitting Diode) - improved technology for the production of touchscreens based on AMOLED technology. Unlike its predecessors, the touch layer is glued to the screen itself, which allows you to get rid of the air layer in the gap between them. This improves clarity, readability in the sun, saturation of colors, and allows you to get a smaller display thickness.

• - 20% brighter than its predecessor
• - 80% less reflects sunlight
• - energy consumption reduced by 20%
• - dust cannot enter the gap between the screen and the touchscreen

Super AMOLED display construction

The upper layer is a touchscreen. It is glued to the second layer - a transparent protective layer, on which the wiring is also located (Wire network for transmission of low voltage current). The wiring goes to the layer with LEDs - they form the image. Below the LEDs is a layer of thin film transistors (TFT). Under them is a substrate, which can be made of a variety of materials, including flexible ones.

Video plot showing the difference in picture quality of displays made using various technologies, including AMOLED and Super AMOLED.

What's the most important thing about a smartphone?

Do not rush to answer, think. I suppose that the majority of readers will still answer: “ CPU».

This is a really significant component, but not the most important one in modern realities. Even 3-year-old processors are doing their job cheerfully.

At all times it was display was considered one of the most important components of mobile gadgets. We constantly look at the display of a smartphone, and no processor will save a gadget if the image quality is poor.

Since 2010, companies have started to pay really close attention to screens in devices. There is only one leader now.

1. Where did AMOLED come from and how it was created

It all started 6 years ago: it was then that Samsung began to actively promote the outlandish AMOLED technology. At that time, it lagged behind IPS-matrices in picture quality and did not match, say, the screen in the iPhone 4.

At that time, the lion's share of Samsung's orders were IPS-matrices for the same Apple. Koreans used their own LCD design for their mass-produced products. Pls(Plane-to-Line Switching), adopted instead of PVA. Again, all this happened without spark and enthusiasm.

A very different effort has focused on AMOLED. The Korean company demonstrated the results of work in this direction on flagship mobile devices, starting with.

Samsung Galaxy S with first commercial Super AMOLED display

Why waste time and money on technology lagging behind the alternatives? There were two main reasons:

1. Lack of competitors(more on this below).
2. Huge development potential.

From year to year Samsung has managed to demonstrate more and more impressive results. And today, AMOLED is not only in their devices - you wear it every day on your wrist. Yes, hey, Apple Watch with AMOLED display from Korea.

Today Samsung is the king of the mobile display industry. What will happen tomorrow, in three years, five years? To answer this question, let's first plunge into the history of one big, complex innovation.

2. What is AMOLED

It stands for this: Active Matrix Organic Light-Emitting Diode or active matrix OLED. And OLED is a semiconductor device made from organic compounds that emit light when an electric current is passed.

An active matrix of thin film transistors (TFT) is used to drive OLEDs. That is, its own transistor is responsible for the operation of each pixel.

Hard? Imagine a crowd of workers (OLEDs) led by managers (TFT matrix). There are many managers, but there are even more employees. Together they form an effective display management system. But managers should not be confused with ordinary workers - this is because OLED and TFT are different things.

This system is very similar to LCD technology. It also uses individual pixels controlled by the TFT. But AMOLED has a number of advantages:

• Each pixel in AMOLED glows independently, while the LCD uses a general backlight. This allows in the first case to create thinner displays(no separate backlight unit) with practically infinite black level(the pixel simply does not emit light if black is what you want). In addition, the average AMOLED matrix consumes less energy than LCD, since when displaying dark images, some of the pixels do not light up, and the backlight in the LCD matrix works constantly.
• AMOLED displays a wider color gamut... On average, 32% more. The picture is richer and juicier.
• Two orders of magnitude faster response time(0.01 ms versus 2 ms for the fastest TN-matrices). That is, no blurring of the picture with fast moving objects on the screen.
• Full 180 ° viewing angles without color distortion and brightness reduction.

There are also disadvantages. These are exactly the ones that Samsung has been working on over the years:

• Fragility of matrices- the slightest crack will lead to partial failure of the display, as well as depressurization between the layers of the screen.
• Reduced service life when working in bright colors in comparison with LCD. Moreover, subpixels of different colors lose brightness at different rates (blue ones degrade the fastest).
• High production cost in comparison with LCD.
• Relatively low brightness compared to other display technologies.
• Increased power consumption in bright images.

A very serious list. But almost all of it is out of touch today. Problems solved by 95%. How did all this happen?

3. Six "LED" years before AMOLED appeared in smartphones

The Korean company has not out of the blue made an emphasis on organic light-emitting diodes:

• In 2004, Samsung became the largest OLED manufacturer in the world with a market share of 40%.
• In 2006, she finally consolidated her leadership position by becoming the largest owner of intellectual property in the OLED field: more 600 US patents and more 2800 international.
• In 2010 year 98% of the global AMOLED market is already owned by Samsung.

To date, the company still has no competitors.

It is worth noting that the Korean manufacturer has been actively experimenting with the use of OLED in various fields, and smartphones are just one of them. So, back in 2005 year Samsung showcased the largest OLED TV with a 21-inch display and the highest resolution of the time, 6.22 million pixels.

In 2008 it showed the largest and at the same time the thinnest OLED TV: 31 inches with a thickness of 4.3 mm. In the same year, in May, the company introduced a 12.1-inch (1280 x 768 dots) thin matrix for notebooks, with plans to begin mass production by 2010. But it didn’t grow together.

And at the end of 2008 Samsung unveils the thinnest (0.5mm) foldable OLED display and the world's largest TV (again). This time the diagonal has grown to 40 inches, the resolution - up to 1920 × 1080 pixels (plus a contrast level of 1,000,000: 1, 107% NTSC color gamut and peak brightness up to 600 nits). It was a breakthrough that everyone wrote about.

However, it wasn't until 2010 that Samsung's AMOLED displays reached market-based devices. They were smartphones Wave S8500 and Galaxy S i9000... Since then, a very active development of Samsung mobile displays began, which surprises to this day.

4. How AMOLED was “forged” for smartphones

The Galaxy S used a so-called display Super AMOLED... It differed from the usual AMOLED in that the sensor layer was integrated directly into the matrix.

The problem with the first AMOLED displays was the relatively low resolution and the use of a subpixel scheme like RGBG(red-green-blue-green, PenTile).

Compared to the classic pixel structure (RGB), the aforementioned one obtained about a third lower subpixel density, which was very noticeable on small text when directly comparing LCD and AMOLED matrices with the same resolution. The latter were noticeably inferior in clarity.

The next step was the release of the matrix Super AMOLED Plus with a 50% increased subpixel density due to the use of the RGB scheme. In addition, it became even thinner, brighter and consumed 18% less energy.

Users were able to evaluate it live in the legendary smartphone Galaxy SII... In terms of picture quality, it tore everybody, but in terms of resolution (800x480 pixels with a diagonal of 4.22 inches) it lagged behind the latest LCD matrices.

So the time has come HD Super AMOLED... The resolution was increased to 1280x720 pixels, but the company again applied the RGBG subpixel scheme. Compared to LCD competitors, there was a slightly reduced clarity, plus a number of features in terms of color display. People got to know such a matrix in devices like Galaxy S3.

PenTile in Galaxy S3

Around the same time, the company introduced a unique tablet with a 7.7-inch HD Super AMOLED Plus matrix based on the classic RGB sub-pixel scheme. For four years, it remained the only tablet with an AMOLED display.

Subpixel structure of the HD Super AMOLED Plus matrix in the Galaxy Note 2

2013 became the starting point for the development of Full HD resolution in smartphones. Samsung did not stand aside, presenting with matrices Full HD Super AMOLED(1920 x 1080 pixels).

It would seem, how can we further increase the resolution, but further Quad HD Super AMOLED(2560x1440 pixels) fell into the subject. The incredible pixel density, the highest clarity and the active development of technology by Samsung specialists have finally replaced PenTile's flaws.

The peak of modern mobile display technologies is realized in. Let's see what this peak is.

A 5.5-inch AMOLED display with a QHD resolution (2560x1440 pixels, 534 ppi) curved on both sides, protected by Corning Gorilla Glass 4 and recognized as the best in the world in terms of picture quality, color reproduction, brightness, contrast. In general, on all fronts. DisplayMate has a detailed study, and we will briefly look at the most interesting points.

Compared to the previous champion, the Galaxy S6, 24% increased display brightness when used in bright ambient light - daylight, intense artificial light, etc. This is a big, noticeable difference. So, the brightness level can reach 440 nits and above, which is a peak, or even surpasses most of the best representatives from the LCD. That is, Samsung has finally solved the problem of low brightness AMOLED compared to LCD.

Moreover, in the automatic brightness control mode under extreme conditions for the display (bright sunlight), it produces impressive 855 nits, which is an absolute record for a mobile screen. Wherein reflectivity of the screen is only 4,6% , which is also one of the best indicators in the industry. This means that even in bright sunlight, the display remains fully legible.

And that's not all. Samsung has implemented technology personalized automatic brightness control when the device monitors how the user adjusts this parameter and adapts to his preferences.

Judging by eyewitness reviews, the Galaxy S7 and S7 Edge automatically adjust brightness even better than the previous record holder - the iPhone. It makes no sense to even compare with other representatives of the Android fraternity, everything was always sad there with automatic brightness control.

Another interesting feature is Always On Display... The screen can remain active almost always, while consuming a minimum of energy, in the region of 3-5% of the total battery capacity per day. We are talking about standby mode, when the necessary stream information can be displayed on the display, such as a clock, calendar, etc.

In terms of color reproduction, Samsung's AMOLED remains ahead of the rest. In adaptive mode, this 131% sRGB color space... If you don't like bright colors, then it's easy to adjust the gamut to your taste - Korean flagships have the richest choice in this regard. There is even a “warm tube” version, which is very close to IPS in terms of color rendition.

Samsung has implemented a subpixel layout Diamond pixels in which the blue and red subpixels are larger than the green. The latter shines the brightest, the first two have a lower brightness. Thus, the company equalized the brightness indicators of the subpixels, but this is a trifle.

The density of the active matrix here is three times higher than that of any other displays, including LCDs with a subpixel RGB scheme. This allows you to completely eliminate the effects of the "ladder" and achieve the highest possible quality in terms of smoothness and clarity of the image.

Don't believe me? Go to any Samsung branded showroom, there are test samples of the Galaxy S7 / S7 Edge, and compare the picture with your smartphone. Especially in a web browser on small text.

I compared it with my own and the difference was far from in favor of the latter. At the same time I compared it with Nexus 6 too (the same resolution), but here the picture is quite sad. The AMOLED matrix in the Nexus is several generations behind. The resolution is high, but the color rendition, clarity - this is not lying around with the latest achievements of Samsung.

To keep all of this from being a marketing obscurity, just read the DisplayMate report. The guys specialize in displays, do not deal with advertising and write as is.

What we have in the end. Current competitors

At the moment, only one technology opposes AMOLED in the mobile world is LCD. In particular, matrices based on IPS(in-plane switching). The technology was developed by Hitachi and NEC in 1996 year with a lot of promise for the future. After 20 years, this backlog was exhausted.

At the moment, mobile LCDs are considered the best in terms of their characteristics in and according to the same experts from. It is precisely about the first place among mobile LCD displays. AMOLED is now the absolute leader.

Apple has achieved good results thanks to the use of all technologies available for IPS:

• dual domain pixels(provide increased contrast and deeper blacks);
• integrated directly into the matrix sensory layer;
• lack of air gap between the screen and the matrix;
• application of the perfect production process;
• very thin color setting.

But Samsung has tackled all AMOLED childhood illnesses. Now alternative technologies simply have nothing to offer. They hit the ceiling and need to look for something completely new, or develop the most promising, which the Koreans, in fact, are doing.

Nevertheless, there are also interesting developments in other areas. Let's talk at the end about future.

The future of mobile display technology

More AMOLED

The display described above in the Galaxy S7 and S7 Edge is unique in that it has surpassed LCD technology on all fronts. The Korean company solved all the technical problems and began to ramp up production. Because there are no more compromises.

There are only advantages in comparison with LCD:

• AMOLED matrices lighter and thinner;
• may be curved thanks to the use of polymer substrates;
• very flexible in terms of power supply and in the vast majority of cases more economical than LCD;
• allow you to create devices with minimal bezels around the display;
• indicators of minimum and maximum brightness are much superior to those in LCD;
• wider color gamut;
• significantly less response time matrices;
• individual control of each subpixel, which, in principle, is impossible for LCD.

If everything is so dignified, why isn't Apple using OLED panels? Two reasons:

1. it became finally good only in the last year;
2. top display technologies Samsung did not give to the side due to the high cost of components and wanting to maintain the advantage.

But now it's time to pick the cream and bring the technology to the masses.

The first bell rang back when it became known that Samsung intends to greatly expand the production of AMOLED displays for a large customer. Everyone thought for Apple, and recently it was in the form of rumors about OLED in the iPhone 7s.

Going forward, we'll see roll-up OLEDs and foldable ones. Quite possibly, due to this, the form factor of future smartphones will completely change.

P.S .: what awaits us in the future. Quantum dots

Quantum dots are a cutting-edge technology that Samsung will one day appear in smartphones of the future. The points themselves are a fragment of a conductor (crystal) with electrons limited in space in three dimensions. These dots are so small that quantum effects are observed inside them.

When an electric current is applied to a quantum dot, radiation of a certain frequency occurs. It can be influenced by adjusting the size of the dot and experimenting with its chemical composition.

What this means in practice: you can very precisely adjust the color value of the emitted color and achieve a much higher image quality than in an LCD.

In 2010 year the first prototypes of displays on quantum dots were created, but they used very toxic cadmium selenide, and the stability of the matrix left much to be desired (burnout after 10 thousand hours).

In 2013 Researchers at the Indian Institute of Science in Bangalore have created quantum dots based on an alloy of zinc, cadmium and sulfur doped with manganese. They turned out to be practically non-toxic and much more stable, and even shone in the range from green to red, while the previous development gave out only orange. Since then, the active development of technology began. QD-LED.

The technology has now found its way into premium TVs, including those from Samsung, but will clearly pave the way for other areas in the future.

Benefits of quantum dots:

• QD-LED has a potential peak brightness of 40,000 nits, two orders of magnitude higher than LCD.
• Reduced power consumption by 30-50% in comparison with LCD, since no separate backlight is needed (quantum dots glow by themselves).
• Can be used in flexible and foldable displays.
• The lifespan of the displays is significantly longer than that of OLEDs, as the pixels are virtually non-fading.
• The small size of quantum dots allows for incredibly high resolution compared to modern designs (important for VR).

As you can see, classic LCD technologies have reached the ceiling, but they have been replaced by two at once: the hard-hitting market AMOLED and potentially even more sophisticated QD-LED ( 5.00 out of 5, rated: 2 )