Skip to main content

Day 1 of IFA brings fresh OLED competition, 4K phones, a turntable revival

The first of two press-only days at IFA 2015 is now in the books, and it was Panasonic and Sony who nabbed the biggest headlines.

Panasonic’s biggest announcement was the arrival of its new THX-certified 4K UHD OLED TV, and believe us: All those acronyms add up to a whole lot of awesome. Panasonic has always been well known for its TVs’ outstanding picture quality, but the company claims this is its best-looking TV yet. Aside from perfect black levels and excellent contrast, the new OLED TV is said to offer Panasonic’s most accurate color ever, delivering stunningly lifelike images. The new OLED TV’s arrival is also a big deal because it stands as the first competition LG has seen since it launched its first OLED just over three years ago.

Recommended Videos

Panasonic’s specialty audio brand, Technics, also garnered attention with some new premium digital audio components, but it was a prototype turntable that got reporters to rush the stage. Technics turntables have been an iconic fixture on many a DJ’s performance rigs, but the company called it quits on vinyl shortly before the brand was shut down five years ago. Apparently, though, Technics’ triumphant return last year was received warmly, so the company is going revive its turntable, this time redesigning it from the ground up.

Technics also introduced some new audiophile headphones at the event. Featuring 50 mm titanium-coated drivers and 14 mm tweeters, the EAH-T700 headphones are intended to compete with the best premium cans currently available. We tried them on, and not only were they extremely comfortable, but they sounded great as well. The cans are still in development, so no word on yet on when you can buy them and how much, but we’ll certainly be keeping an eye out.

Sony’s big news centered around a new Experia Z5 smartphone, boasting an eye-popping 4K screen. Do you really need a 4K screen on your smartphone? Who cares? Sony is doing it regardless. In all, there are three new Z5  phones: the 4.6-inch Z5 Compact, the 5.2-inch flagship Z5, and the 5.5-inch Z5 Premium is a phablet with the first 4K smartphone display. A few changes to the phone’s construction were changed but, don’t worry, the Z5s are all waterproof.

That’s it for press day number one. We’ll be back tomorrow with a roundup of the second press day ahead of the show’s official opening this Friday.

Caleb Denison
Digital Trends Editor at Large Caleb Denison is a sought-after writer, speaker, and television correspondent with unmatched…
2025 could finally be the year of a budget-friendly Samsung Galaxy Z Flip
A person closing the Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 6.

The idea of a more budget-friendly Samsung clamshell has gained steam as well-known leakers drop more and more hints that a new Galaxy Z Flip is on the way. Today, another leak from someone in the know adds even more credence to that rumor.

Ross Young made a post on X where he suggested that Samsung might release a Z Flip 7 FE in 2025 with the clamshell design fans have waited for. Young has a proven record for accurate leaks, and their work in the supply chain gives him a unique insight into what companies are working on.

Read more
Google just announced Android 16. Here’s everything new
The Android 16 logo on a smartphone, resting on a shelf.

No, that headline isn't a typo. A little over a month after Android 15 was released to the masses in October, Google has already announced Android 16 and begun rolling out its first developer beta of the newest Android version.

If this seems like a much earlier release than usual, that's because it is. We typically expect the first developer beta of the next Android update to arrive in February. For Android 16, however, Google has pushed the timeline up by a few months and launched Android 16 Developer Preview 1 in mid-November.
Why Android 16 is launching so much earlier

Read more
Here’s every Pixel phone that can download Android 16 Developer Preview 1
The Google Pixel 9 Pro XL next to the Google Pixel 8 Pro.

Even though Android 15 launched only recently, Google is already moving on to Android 16, which is much earlier than is typical. And if you have a Pixel device from the past couple of years, you can get the Android 16 Developer Preview 1 right now.

Typically, when Google releases a beta for Android, the Pixel lineup gets it first before any other phones. When Google announced Android 16 earlier today, we didn’t know exactly which Pixel models would be able to get the Developer Preview. But Google just revealed which models can run Android 16, and two of them are a bit surprising.

Read more