What Does LED TV Mean to Samsung’s TV Product Line?
By Calvin Hsieh, Research Director
Samsung has more than 50 models listed on their US web site, including their latest LED TVs. In order to understand this Samsung’s LED TV positioning in their LCD TV product line, we made a comparison table, shown below. From the specifications and suggested prices, we can make some interesting points:
- In terms of product sizes and pricing, the B6 and B7 series LED TVs are closer to the A7 and A8 series LCD TVs than they are to the A6/B6 and A7. For example, LED B6 has 40”, 46” and 55”; LCD A7 40”, 46” and 52”. The price gap is similar ($400-500) for the same size comparison.
- The B6 and B7 series LED TVs are likely to eventually replace the A7 and A8 series, which use CCFL backlights. Samsung hopes that consumers find the advantages of LED TVs are enough that they can increase the suggested price, which would help Samsung increase revenues on high-end models. Samsung is likely to adopt LED backlights for all their high-end models and keep CCFL for entry- and mid-levels; LED TV is equivalent to high-end LCD TV in Samsung’s product line.
- The B6 and B7 series LED TVs adopted edge lighting instead of the direct lighting used in the premium A9 series. Edge lighting enables lower costs, but it does not support local dimming. Probably only high-end customers notice or value the difference. Many consumers will be glad to own any LED TV, and they may have no idea of the difference between edge and direct lighting. Another benefit is that edge lighting can enable slimmer design, which is a difference that all consumers can notice.
- After intensively promoting frame rate conversion in 2008, Samsung is using LED backlight as the next feature to enable improved picture quality. If this strategy works, Samsung can drive higher revenues from the high-end models now, and extend LED backlights to mid-level products in the future. So, it’s reasonable to expect there will be lower level B5 series LED TVs ranging from 32” to 46” or even 55”.
- For those consumers who value picture quality, Samsung will promote the B6 series 40” LED TV UN40B6000 ($2,299). For those who think applications are more critical and interesting, Samsung will offer the B6 series 46” LCD TV LN46B650 ($2,099) with DLNA. For consumers that feel size does matter, the 52” LCD TV LN52B610 is available at the same price, trading internet connectivity for larger screen size.
Table 1: Samsung FHD TVs by Series
|
Series |
B6 |
B7 |
B5 |
B6 |
B6 |
A7 |
A8 |
A9 |
| 55” |
$3,599 UN55B6000 |
$3,799 UN55B7000 |
$1,799 LN52B530 |
$2,099 LB52B610 |
?? |
$2,899 LN52A750 |
$3,299 LN52A850 |
$4,999 LN55A950 |
| 46” |
$2,799 UN46B6000 |
$2,999 UN46B7000 |
$1,299 LN46B530 |
$1,599 LN46B610 |
$2,099 LN46B650 |
$2,299 LN46A750 |
2,599 LN46A850 |
$3,399 LN46A950 |
| 40” |
$2,299 UN40B6000 |
?? |
$899 LN40B530 |
$1,199 LN40B610 |
$1,699 LN40B650 |
$1,899 LN40A750 |
|
|
| Frame
Rate |
120 Hz |
120 Hz |
60 Hz |
120 Hz |
120 Hz |
120 Hz |
120 Hz |
120 Hz |
| Backlight |
LED: Edge |
LED: Edge |
CCFL |
CCFL |
CCFL |
CCFL |
CCFL |
LED: Direct |
| Internet |
Ethernet |
Ethernet |
no |
no |
Ethernet |
Dongle |
Dongle |
Dongle |
| DLNA |
no |
yes |
no |
no |
yes |
yes |
yes |
yes |
| Content Lib. | no | yes | no | no | yes | yes | yes | yes |
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| from → Authors (post by authors), Calvin Hsieh, TVs
What is difference between LED edge and LED direct lighting?
What is DLNA?
LED as backlight source of TFT LCD panel has two options; one is edge lighting, the other is direct lighting. The terms describe the alignment of LED. Edge lighting is LEDs on the edges of open cell; direct lighting is to spread LEDs on to the back of open cell as the array. Only direct lighting can offer 2D local dimming.
DLNA (Digital Living Network Alliance ) http://www.dlna.org/industry/home/
Basically, you can think about it as a kind of protocal which can make different IT and CE devices communicate easier without efforts of consumer.
HELLO/ CAN YOY PLEASE EXPLAIN TO ME WHAT EXACTLY IS AN LED TV. I HAD A LOOK AT SAMSUNGS NEW SERIES 6000,7000 AND 8000 SERIES THE OTHER DAY. LOOKS PRETTY GOOD. SOMEONE SAID THAT IT IS JUST AND LCD TV WITH A LED BACKLIGHT. IT THIS TRUE.
Yes, LED TV is a marketing wording, actually it is LCD TV with LED backlight. By the way, it’s white LED and edge lighting. The product strategy is to adopt lower cost LED lighting technology comparing with LED direct lighting to reach affordable retail price and slim design which two are critical to consumer market.
Why Samsung is the only one selling edge lit led tv? Why Sony is not making the same edge lit led tv? Doesn’t Sony have the technology to make one yet? What about other tv manufacturers such as Panasonic or Sharp?
My idea is, Samsung is probably not the first one to sell LCD TV with LED backlight but Samsung is the first one to make this come to high end product line instead of branding products to show off the technology.
Edge lighting is helpful for the strategy. However, for other competitors, similar products with edge lighting make them look like followers on the market after Samsung. So, if they can deliver direct lighting with local dimming, they can prove their products are superior to Samsung’s.
I think this is not majorly a technology issue (edge or direct), it is product marketing strategy: price, spec and time to market. As for Sharp, they will come into LED TV. Panasonic will, too. But Panasonic has their burden on PDP for marketing resource.
on the 55″ LED 8 seris the 4 corners have dark spot?
Sorry, I have no idea. 55″ LED TV panel comes from Samsung themselves. However, owing to LED unit supply issue, Samsung will also find AUO and CMO for LED TV panel (actually LCD panel with LED backlight: white and edge lighting; planned 40″ below so far) in Q4. Will be delivered next Q1.
Using led’s as backlighting for LCD’s has been around a while in the laptop an mobile phone markets, its interesting that its only recently coming into larger LCD tv’s. Sony make the zx1 model that also use the edge-light system an are really thin at less than a cm in depth, but interstingly also make the 46″ and 55″ x4500 models using a full backlight array which produces much more imperssive pictures.
And with Sharp, LG, Tohiba and JVC all realising model in the coming months LED backlighting looks like its here to stay and is going to be the future of LCD tv’s.
NO clear mean to understand of LED TV, Please mention clearly.
1) make LED backlight introduced to high end market in 2009 then mainstream market in 2010. 2) eventually replace CCFL and keep ASP not to down too fast because of market maturity. 3) extend their marketing story to consumers and leading position in this market.
picture quality of LED is better than LCD TVs
Edge-lit LCD-TV can be combined with local (2D) dimming technology,
as has been demonstrated by NXP on CES2009 and on IFA2009
and published at SID2009!!
They demonstrated a prototye LCD-TV with 2*5 segments, White-LEDs, edge-lit backlight, combined with a 120Hz full-HD LCD panel.
Video processing for both 120Hz frame-rate conversion and local (2D) dimming is performed by their PNX5120 video post processor,
which is a component available in mass production.
The effects of local (2D) dimming, compared to global (0D) dimming, edge-lit LCD-TV are significant:
On average video-data
* extra spatial contrast and
* 15% less power consumption.
I think Samsung may have partly shot themselves in the foot, especially over here in the UK, by overly complicating their range of LED TVs.
There are two types of 7 Series, one of which is exclusive to a select number of retailers. Each retailer also appears to be using a different model number to every other, which can only lead to further confusion for the consumer.
The beauty of, say, Apple products is that they tend to adopt a one-size-fits-all approach – most notably with the iPhone. This seems to have worked for them really well, by not baffling the consumer with a myriad of different specifications and numbers.
Regarding the comment on Aug 17th: “I think Samsung may have partly shot themselves in the foot…. by overly complicating their range of LED TVs.”
As an owner of a Samsung LN52A750, I have to agree. Shortly after releasing my model, Samsung began shipping the ‘B’ models. Samsung has virtually abandoned owners of the previous models, and not updated firmware or software for these older TV’s while they keep pumping out new models. Since the A750 is just over 1 year old at this point, this is not a good sign…
Regarding the May 7th question about DLNA- This standard along with online media and application streaming is the real future for modern TV’s. All TV’s should support this going forward. These features allows TV’s with networking capabilities (wired or wireless) to discover and connect to media services on a home network to play personal libraries of Music, Videos, Pictures, etc.
Additionally, most new TV’s are shipping with software features that allow you to connect to Internet based Media Subscription services such as “Blockbuster Movies on Demand” to stream new release movies, “Netflix”, and “YouTube” to view videos. Additional software applications are also available on some TV’s for educational purposes (exercise, cooking, etc), or playing games.
LCD stands for liquid crystal display What does LED stand for???????
LED = Light-emitting diode.
LED TV = LCD TV with LED backlight, no matter it is direct or edge lit.
Furthermore, in the LED HDTV line, energy consumption is reduced by 40% comparing with traditional LCD HDTVs of a similar size. The LED HDTVs also include a power indicator menu, and an optimized energy savings mode.
No matter how you look at the new 2010 Samsung, HD ready 46in.LED,it is just Marvelous,just got mine,and away we go,lol…
Now with the Blu-Ray dvd player and great speakers,how can ya go wrong,especially in a smaller living room,bring on the final 4…
This blog gives a very informative info. We like how the different models were presented in a table. It gives us an overview at the same time it is easy for us to compare the different models.
is 2D refer to 2 dimensions? how can work?
The dimension (0D, 1D and 2D) for LED backlight means how the backlight can enhance the images. For example, there’re some brighter and darker part in the same image (such as sunset); if we can adjust the backlight to enhance brigher part with stronger lighting and darker part with weaker lighting, the image will be more excellent with higher contrast. Since that, backlight adjustment is the key.
0D: your backlight can not support local dimming. That is, all bright or all dark in all parts of the same image.
1D: backlight can be stronger or weaker line by line (1 dimension).
2D: the best case is direct LED lighting. Your LED chips align like a X/Y matrix behind the cell (2 dimensions) so that it can allow any part of the image brighter or darker.
Thanks Mr. Hsieh
Just got back from Best known tech. store where I looked at TVs. Looking for direct backlight LCD TV. Asked salesperson to show me a TV that has entire LED backlight. She showed me a high-end Samsung – gorgeous brushed stainless steel framed one, that she thought had direct backlighting. However – she asked someone else and then came back and said that it was sidelit and that there were no TV companys making full LED backlit TVs anymore. If it is better to have direct backlight, why are no companys producing them? Could it be that they would not be as slim as those that are sidelit and consumers would not buy them because of it.
Is there a difference in the backlighting? Are they using RGB LED lamps or blue lamps coated with phosphur? My research ells me that RGB is better but I think most LED TVs are made with blue LED. Anyone know?
Except A9 series (2008 model), Samsung almost have no direct lighting (D-LED) models now which adopts RGB. Most of LED BLU TV now are W-LED including E-LED and D-LED to save cost.
Hummm.. Thanks for your deep infomation about LED TV
I never know before so your info very helpful for me.
thanks.
how work in 3d mode