Sony Debuts OLED TVs

By Nick Mokey Published September 30, 2007

Sony Debuts OLED TVs

While many still marvel over how thin plasma-screen televisions are, Sony has leapfrogged the competition with the introduction of an ultra-thin OLED television – the world’s first. Sony’s XEL-1 will be just 3mm thick, with an 11-inch screen size.

Besides the thin factor, OLED screens should also possess superior brightness and dark levels, with a contrast ratio Sony claims is over 1,000,000:1. Color reproduction should also be better than on sets using other technologies, and without a high-voltage backlight to power, the TVs consume just 45 watts.

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There are caveats, though. The lifetime of an OLED screen will still be half that of its LCD counterpart, and a price of Y200,000 ($1,736 USD) would put the 11-inch XEL-1 in the same league as much larger plasma and LCD sets.

Sony’s XEL-1 will go on sale in Japan only on December 1. Since its high price will make it off limits to most TV shoppers, Sony will produce only 2,000 units a month.

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OLED TV early Black Friday deals 2024: Get up to 53% off

Sansui 55-inch OLED TV on wall.

Update 11/5/24: We've update this page with some new deals. While I personally would have like to have found something cheaper than $650 for our low end, there weren't any that we could really recommend at this time. At the same time, there were massive savings on TVs that we consider to be the best of the best going on already. This space will be exciting to see develop in real time as we get closer to "real" Black Friday deals in late November.

If you’re in the market for a new TV during the early Black Friday deals, we’ve got good news. There are a lot of early Black Friday TV deals to shop, and if you’re looking for top notch picture quality, we’ve tracked down all of the best early Black Friday OLED TV deals. OLED technology will ensure you take home some premium picture quality, and we’re seeing discounts from some of the best TV brands. Read onward for details on the savings, and if you’d like a little more affordability with still a high quality image, don’t miss all of the best early Black Friday QLED TV deals.
LG 48-inch Class B4 — $650 $1,500 19% off

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