A rollable QD-OLED TV could be on the way

Samsung's rollable QD-OLED would rival LG’s existing OLED
(Image credit: LG)

QD-OLED powered TVs haven't even hit shop floors yet, but that's not stopping panel manufacturer Samsung from taking the technology to the next level. According to a report in The Elec, Samsung Display has started developing a super-thin, rollable QD-OLED that could rival LG's pricey rollable OLED.

Sources say that Samsung is investigating methods to make its manufacturing process for QD-OLED simpler and cheaper by reducing its use of glass substrates, which, if it succeeds, will not only make the panel far slimmer but will also mean it will be rollable.

Currently, Q-OLED panels are sandwiched between two glass substrate layers,  one for the thin-film transistors at the bottom and one for QD colour conversion at the top. To make its panel thinner, Samsung is seeking to remove the top layer, though sources say that Samsung Display is hoping to streamline the structure even further if they can. 

Rollable TVs have been around for a few years now, with LG initially unveiling a prototype for its flexible TV, which retracts into a rectangular base, back in January 2019. Featuring Dolby Vision, 120Hz 4K gamingHDMI 2.1 ports with VRR and ALLM, and a Dolby Atmos soundbar in the base, the Signature OLED R costs a cool £99,999 ($100,000 / AU$130,000).

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Read our hands-on review of Sony's A95K QD-OLED TV 

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If you want to get technical, check out our QD-OLED explainer

Mary is a staff writer at What Hi-Fi? and has over a decade of experience working as a sound engineer mixing live events, music and theatre. Her mixing credits include productions at The National Theatre and in the West End, as well as original musicals composed by Mark Knopfler, Tori Amos, Guy Chambers, Howard Goodall and Dan Gillespie Sells.