Jordan O'BrienLG, Panasonic and Philips have all toyed with OLED TVs over the years, but now Sony is finally ready to launch its own models using the technology.
Sony has been rather bullish with its LCD TV technology and has restated time and time again that the technology inside its TVs meant that it didn’t need to adopt the ‘expensive’ OLED panels used by LG. The Sony ZD9 was supposed to be proof of this, and it’s certainly considerably brighter than any OLED on the market – but it seems that the world’s third largest TV manufacturer is now ready to have a go at making an OLED of its own.
Barry Young, CEO of the OLED Association, confirmed Sony’s plans to Forbes Magazine, and even revealed that there will be two OLED models from the Japanese technology giant. The OLED TVs will supposedly be available in both 55in and 65in panels, with shipping expected to start in the second quarter of 2017.
Sony isn’t the first manufacturer to toy around with the idea of launching its own OLED sets; Panasonic made similar waves when it announced its OLED TVs. Sony will supposedly look for mass market appeal however, whereas Panasonic distinctly targeted the higher-end of the AV market.
According to Barry, Sony is anticipating sales in the region of 80,000 units for the 55in variant, while the 65in version is being tipped for sales in excess of 120,000. That would mean Sony has more confidence in the larger screen version, despite LG having more success with 55in OLEDs.
Like most OLED TVs, the displays themselves will be sourced from LG Display – meaning Sony will have to make nice with one of its fiercest competitors in order to launch its new model. Expect LG’s models to be priced below those of Sony however.
It’s not known when Sony plans its OLED TV debut, but with CES 2017 just around the corner, it would be the perfect time for the company to make a splash.