Although Google has not yet confirmed whether or not they are going to release their brand new Google TV software by the end of this year, the most popular rumor regarding the fact is that LG might be teaming up with them in this project. Whether LG will have any part in actual development of the software is unknown as well, but this much is known that LG is not alone in its venture as the company will also be accompanied by other television giants, Samsung and Vizio. The union was announced during CES 2012 as the two manufacturers (Samsung and Vizio, because LG has not yet made an official announcement) declared that they would now be designing many of their products around the forthcoming Google TV. It would be interesting to see if Google’s own “Ice-Cream Sandwich” will be used as the new base for the upcoming software.
LG remained constant in their performance in terms of winning awards at the major consumer electronics shows as it won nine awards at the CES this year as well. Among many awards such as the IMS Research TV Innovation Award, Popular Mechanics Editors’ Choice Award and a series of HD Guru Awards, what stands out is the Best HDTV Award, presented to LG by CNET. The LG 55EM9600 OLED HDTV is the one that made LG proud in most of the departments, and CNET added the adjectives “exciting”, “innovative” and “promising” to express their enthusiasm regarding the OLED TV. Everyone who saw the TV in action is awaiting its release, which LG promises is going to be soon. The price though unannounced, will be interesting to take note of as OLED TVs have always had the reputation of a high price tag.
Since the “4K” or “ultra-high definition” technology began to be implemented in TVs a few months back in 2011, all major manufacturers had begun working on it and with the CES 2012 coming up, it seems like LG is ready to unveil theirs. They have already announced that this new 84-inch 3D TV will have a resolution of 3840 x 2160 along with all the trademark LG Smart TV and 3D TV features like “Cinema 3D” and an app store that has more than a thousand applications to engage the consumers. Another feature which has attracted a lot of attention towards this television set is the “voice-controlled magic remote”. It has already become quite popular that Apple might be releasing a “siri” controlled iTV soon, but LG seems to have cashed in on the voice-controlled TV tech ahead of Apple. How well this works is however, something that we will just have to wait and find out.
We first got test of the OLED panels back in 2007, when they were released into the market by Sony, but compared to the 55-incher that is going to be on display from LG at the CES 2012, those were dwarves. Not all details about the specifications of the TV are available at the moment, but you can expect a contrast ratio of 100,000: 1 on the Oxide TFT crafted OLED panel. Exciting as the news may be for the video enthusiasts among us, they must also take note that the display unit is not going to be a finished product that would be ready to go out in the market, but only a prototype unit. However, given the company’s constant ongoing research in the field of OLED television sets, which bore fruit last year also as it put an ultra slim 31 incher on display, the release date might not be that far away now.
The new promotional video from Samsung is pretty straightforward as it shows the various kinds of technology that has been in use from the time the TV sets were invented till today, and then it gives the indication that something revolutionary is yet again coming in 2012 from Samsung. We will soon a get a look at what they have in mind at the CES 2012 next month, but speculations are already there as always. Among a few, the most popular rumor at this moment is that the latest TVs from Samsung will probably be powered by Google’s Android OS. If the rumor is true, then it would be interesting to see which version of the OS is utilized here. The move is believed by many to be a counter-strategy against the upcoming Apple TV sets. We will know what’s what in a few days at the CES 2012, keep checking.
It seems like the much awaited next-gen OLED TVs are finally going to be on display in January at the CES in 2012, at least by the two Korean giants LG and Samsung. What is even more exciting to know is that the same technology might also be incorporated into Apple’s upcoming TVs. Although the Organic Light-emitting Diode or OLED technology is highly appreciated for its low power consumption and awesome black levels, it has so far been in use for high end touch screen mobile devices only. There were a few OLED TVs released a few years ago, but they did not make it big due to two main problems. The first was the production cost which made the final product a bit too expensive and the second was the difficulties that were associated with producing larger flat panel versions based on OLED technology. Now, with the news of Samsung and LG showcasing 55-inch OLED television sets at the CES in January and launching them by the time of the next Olympic in London, England; we can safely assume that they have sorted out the second problem at least. However, what we are not sure of is whether or not these new OLED TVs will be any more affordable for the general population than the first generation OLED TVs were.
