CES 2024 is in full swing and, as expected, we’ve seen an influx of impressive new TVs appear.
And while our TV/AV editor Tom Parsons has been unabashed with his praise of TCL’s latest giant 115-inch QM891G mini LED, for me the standout announcements came from LG and Samsung which both revealed new “transparent” TV display technologies.
In Samsung’s case, this was a proof of concept, see-through micro LED TV which is in no way designed for home use – which is no surprise given most micro LED TVs still cost the same as a down payment on a house.
But in LG’s case, the see-through OLED T is, according to all the company reps we asked at CES 2024, going to be a commercial product people can actually buy.
Being fully transparent – see what I did there – I applaud both Samsung and LG for the sheer ambition and gumption it must have taken to create these products. LG in particular deserves praise for making such a next gen product that’s intended to “work” and be available for purchase in the real world. This is especially true given how impressive its specs are.
We’re waiting on full technical and price details, but we do know the OLED T runs using the same wireless technology and processor as the new M4 Wireless OLED TV. This means it in theory will be able to offer a cable-free, discreet home cinema set-up with minimal impact on your lounge’s feng shui.
But, in both instances, while I was impressed, I can’t help but wish the companies had paid a little more time, attention and effort to helping bring OLED display tech, and top-end TV experiences in general, to the more affordable end of the market.
Regular readers will know our team of testers are fans of OLED. Look at our best TV guide and you’ll see in most instances OLED is the display tech to get if you want the best picture quality and don’t mind paying for it. That’s why the majority of the What Hi-Fi? Awards 2023 best TV winners were OLED sets.
The problem is, they are still too expensive for most people, with anything over 55-inches setting you back at least £1000 / $1000. And to make matters worse, the tech is currently looking set to get more, not less expensive. Last year LG raised the price for its then top-of-the-line LG C3, which was the successor to the stellar LG C2 which set the benchmark for price-per-pound performance when it first came out.
We haven’t had pricing information for the new LG C4 yet, but conversations we’ve had with company reps indicate this trend isn’t going to change this year. This is especially true as LG’s next cheapest OLED, the B4, is incredibly similar to the C4, which indicates it also won’t be significantly cheaper. With the A-series not available in most territories now, that could leave buyers with no easy entry into the world of OLED this year.
This is a shame as we’ve been waiting years for OLED to hit a price point that is attainable to regular buyers, which we generally take as being around £500 / $500. It was when then-upstart manufacturers started producing good 4K sets at that price that the resolution started gaining traction with the public. And, in truth, I’d hoped 2024 would be the year this happened for OLED.
But LG and Samsung’s overt focus on the top end of the market and new tech makes me think that cheaper OLED sets just isn’t either’s focus, which is a crying shame, especially considering the current cost of living crisis.
Here’s hoping Panasonic, Philips or Sony have better news for us when they unveil their full 2024 TV ranges later this year.
MORE:
These are the best OLED TVs we’ve reviewed
Check out our picks of the best 65-inch TVs
We detail the best 55-inch TVs we’ve tried and tested
