LG has sent out a press release detailing their upcoming QHD (that's 2K, or 2560 x 1440 pixels) display panel. The panel has received certification by NEMKO, a Norwegian testing and certification organization for electrical products. Now that the certification, which says the panel meets the 100 percent RGB color reproduction standard, is complete LG can begin mass-producing the displays. Just in time for the G3, which is all but confirmed to use a QHD panel.
The ultra-slim panel is just 1.2mm thick, with a 1.15mm bezel requirement. It's the narrowest (we assume this means thickness) panel available and is 0.05mm thinner than panels produced in 2013. Combined with the same level of brightness we're used to seeing in HD displays, this looks like a screen worth touting for LG. The full press release follows.
LG Display's 5.5-inch Quad HD LCD Panel for Smartphones Receives Certification for Quad HD Quality Ahead of Mass Production
Seoul, Korea (May 8, 2014) – LG Display announced today that its 5.5-inch Quad HD (QHD) AH-IPS LCD panel for smartphones was certified as a QHD display after passing verified tests by NEMKO, the Norway-based international testing and certification organization for electrical products. The certification comes shortly before the new Quad HD LCD panel will be unveiled with the forthcoming LG's flagship smartphone to be launched in the first half of the year.
The certified 5.5-inch QHD AH-IPS LCD panel has 2560 x 1440 pixels, four times the image resolution of HD panels and 1.8 times higher resolution than a Full HD panel. With 538 pixels per inch, this panel also meets the 100 percent RGB color reproduction standard.
This panel, which will go into mass production shortly, will offer superior performance to other existing smartphone panels. This is an ultra-slim panel with a mere 1.2 mm thickness and has a 1.15 mm bezel, which will be the narrowest available and 0.05 mm less than panels introduced last year.
In addition, the panel has achieved the same level of brightness as a Full HD panel. It is difficult to raise penetration ratio in higher resolution panels since they have more pixels. However, LG Display successfully achieved higher brightness by improving the penetration ratio through enhancing the pixel structure design and aperture ratio in the LTPS backplane.
The Quad HD display produces images in sharper color and contrast than regular displays because of the greater amount of pixels. This means that high resolution images and videos in the Blu-ray format can be viewed in a fully vivid and realistic manner. The display retains the readability of letters and images without distorting them when they are enlarged while surfing the internet or working on documents.
"This product fulfills the core qualities of smartphone displays, which are high resolution and slim design, and I believe the consumers can enjoy vivid images that are close to real life with this display," said Byung-koo Kim, Vice President and Head of LG Display's IT/Mobile Development Group. "LG Display will continue to maintain technology leadership in the super high-resolution smartphone display market above 500 ppi resolution, which will take off this year."
According to DisplaySearch, the shipment of premium smartphone displays based on LTPS backplanes is expected to grow to 780 million units by this year and 940 million units by next year. These products are going to maintain sufficient competitive advantage in premium product categories where large size, high resolution and low power consumption are key factors.
Reader comments
LG unveils new QHD panel, gives a peek at G3 tech
Why did we switch from judging HD on the vertical to the horizontal? It's so stupid. How is it 'quad' HD when solid HD is 720p and 1440 is only double that. I know 480p is there but that's not something we base HD on widely. 4k isn't even 4000 pixels. It's all gimmicks, confusion and marketing. Smh. *end rant*
AC App via Nexus 5
Now throw that sucker on some sleek phones with minimal bezels!!!!!
Dat bezel tho
The bezel is only 1.2 mm thick. You want a completely bezel-less display? Those are probably another year or two away.
Lol I was taking about the one in the pic
What im really interested in is black levels. Screens can be colour accurate and high resolution, but still have awful black levels, ruining the overall effect. The N5 screen being a classic example, great colours and very sharp, but dire blacks and terrible off axis washout. The G2 is only average, but tollerable.
Im interested in the G3, but ill have to see it in the flesh first because its a deal breaker for me
You can never beat AMOLED for black levels, there is only so much LCD could do.
HTCs screens are in a different league to most others, so its quite possible. Id be happy if the G3 screen matches the G2 for blacks, but if its like the N5 then no way.
If you gave one of those two girls a 1080p screen instead, I probably wouldn't able to tell.
I'm all for positive ways to change devices.
This has from reading in various forms ect received a few negative responses such as why bother in this area as what we have now is good enough.
Whilst this may be true if this tech as stated can reduced battery consumption and be energy efficient then to me it's well worth it.
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Somehow, I won't be surprised if I end up getting the G3. I'm all about display quality, I really like the slim bezels on LG's smartphones, I watch a lot of video on my smartphone. But I will wait to confirm support for T-Mobile's 700mhz Band 12 LTE is on board, T-Mobile should work with manufacturers of new smartphones to future-proof the radio.
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Finally!
Now there is officially another choice available for 2014/2015... I thought the OPPO Find 7 was going to be my only option..
1080P is so 2013... Ok Samsung S5 Prime.. You're up next...
Those girls probably got skin cancer from holding those things.
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Will this be ready in time for the G3?
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That is the screen for the G3
IF these are not yet in production like LG says, and we're supposed to see the G3 soon after the LG doohickey on May 27, then no. Phones to be sold in June already have all the components made, and are probably assembled already.
But I stopped believing anything printed on a press release 3 years ago :P
lol thanks Jerry. I believe they are already in production seeing as they relaeased their Japan 'version' today with the same 5.5 inch display
Announced, not released.
http://www.au.kddi.com/english/mobile/product/smartphone/
"Available from late Jul.2014"
(Interestingly all the new "summer collection" phones come with Wimax2+ in addition to LTE and 3G and CDMA.. I wonder what the battery drain effects will be)
Nice. The G3 will feel like the first true upgraded flagship phone of the year. After being underwhelmed with the S5 and the One M8, the QHD display of the G3 makes it the first phone I would consider upgrading for over my Galaxy S4. Still, I'm going to wait for the Note 4 and hope it will include a QHD display. But if for some reason the Note 4 doesn't, which I doubt, then I would most likely come back to the G3.
Great job on LG's part. The G3 should be great.
Dang! Those bezels are HUUUUUUUUUGE
That blue circuit board is for the certification process. It is not the G3 frame.
Man I still have my 23 apple cinema display from 2004 and it has that resolution and I still use that same monitor to this day
Sent from my Nexus 7 2013 or iPhone 5
Pretty cool
posted via Galaxy S4
720p is good enough for me. There is nothing I am going to do with my phone that will require more. Although I usually like the "more is better" mantra, it should probably stop in this area soon. Let the work on efficiency now. Better communications would be good too.
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Yeah I said the same thing.. then I got a Nexus 5.. though I think that ~450 ppi is about the max we will ever need from a sharpness point of view.. but don't think LG and Samsung will get that memo..
only 5.5-inch? that's too small... anything smaller than the Galaxy Note 3 is too small.
even with the 2k screen. :(
It's only to look at, not to put it in places!!
Comment winner!
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My pockets and hands say otherwise.
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I just hope they can keep the whole device size down. A 5.5 inch screen is definitely pushing the limits to a size of phone that I would buy. If they can continue the extremely small bezels like the G2, then it probably won't be so bad.
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Meanwhile iPhone 5s is still rocking a sub 720p display, love it. To be fair, "only" full 1080p displays where available when it was released.
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Let's talk about battery life with 1080p screens shall we.
There's a good reason why iPhone still uses a lower resolution and yet still lasts almost 9 hours a day.
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All android flagships can do 9 hours. Easy.
Although I kinda agree with the 1080p being enough on a phone. I'm more interested in 2K on my TV than on my phone.
2K on phone will also slow down the phone by a fraction of a second I may never notice, but this seems a more relevant nag than battery drain.
Sorry, my note 3 does that without skipping a beat.
My G2 easily does that.
Posted via Android Central App using an LG G2.
9 hours is pathetic for a 2013 smartphone. I can easily hit 17 hours while using my LG g2.
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That's so 2011 dude, I easily hit 48 hours on my *insert phone here*.
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My phone says 55 hours.
Pretty sure the much smaller screen have something to do with it.
really? Your phone should be getting longer battery life than that. Seriously, with the smaller screen and resolution iphones should be seeing at least 12-15 hours a day minimum,
They do. I don't know what he's doing to kill his battery in nine hours, but no one I know who uses an iPhone ever needs to plug in by the end of the work day. My girlfriend's iPhone 5 typically has significantly more juice (percentage-wise, at least) left at the end of the day than my Nexus 5.
If I don't use my iPhone I can get beyond a day. But if it is used then I'm charging by the end of the day. I use instant messaging and imessage, emails, music and web browsing.
and if apple are correct,why has the print trade bothered to print coffee table books at such high res for years,many much higher than 300 ppi (equiv).
if folk dont want bigger brighter more accurate screens,just buy small cheap phones.
some of us have been nagging for bigger,better screens for the last ten years,finaly mobile and monitors are decent size,accurate colour repro and getting cheaper,average screen size will not get smaller again,why do folk think thete are all the "mini'series of phones usualy released just after their bigger brothers.
Come on LG give me the same 5.2" screen of the g2 in same size device, with a matte or metal finish back and sd card slot and I will be happy. I don't want to carry a phone any bigger than the g2 otherwise I might as well just get a phablet.
Posted via Android Central App on nexus 7 (2nd gen)
Don't say it isn't unnecessary....cuz it is.
Posted via my Moto X (Sorry Nexus 5, too many issues)
Damn I'm going to have the hardest time deciding between the G3 and the Note 4. This sucks!
Posted from my Galaxy Note 3, LG G2 or Nexus 7? You'll never know!
That`s depending on you, if you like to use the phone with the stylus ( Pen) or not. I`m going to wait for the NOTE 4.
I'm stuck in the same boat. I like my note 3 but I hate the physical home button and if Samsung actually changes the form factor that would be welcome but only if onscreen buttons were standard. 2k displays are worth it even if you can't see a big difference, its the fact that it has been done on a wide scale which could lead to better things in the future.
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SO you want a 5.7" Note 4 with a wasted .02 of space for buttons? Then inevitably (see HTC) you will complain about the wasted bezel space I would guess...
No thanks keep the buttons where they belong, on the bottom bezel...
Used to have the note 3 and loved it but once I tried the G2..I just can't go back to that huge physical button anymore.. I cannot wait for the G3 but if they remove the button and the battery is bigger on the note 4 then I will be in doubt again..
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I just don't get it. Serves the same function as the on screen button, and takes up 0 screen space. Never really got used to the back buttons on the G2 but it was good phone.
Let me give my opinion/reasoning why onscreen buttons are better than physical ones. So let's say you have two phones that have the exact same physical dimensions but one has physical/capacitive buttons and the other doesn't. The phone with the onscreen buttons can actually have a larger screen without increasing the overall dimensions of the phone because you don't need the extra space at the bottom for the physical/capacitive buttons. Now you may say, the onscreen buttons take up the extra space that you gained with the larger screen which is true when doing general navigation of the phone but not when viewing media content like pictures and videos, which is when you would actually want the bigger screen because the onscreen buttons go away when viewing such content. And with Google's new inversion mode there are even more apps (mostly games and media apps) that are taking advantage of the FULL screen.
This is somewhat theoretical because from what I've seen in the real world is that manufacturers that use onscreen buttons fail to reduce the bezel at the bottom except for the Nexus 5.
Excellent post. Nice summary in that last sentence too. Bottom line (at the moment) it makes not real difference if a physical or onscreen button is used as long as the mfctr does not remove the wasted bezel where the physical button would be.
Here's to the soon advent of the devices that do so. Giving us smaller phones with larger displays. LG is leading the way here. The G2 is excellent. The G3 (it appears) is even better bc the side bezels are basically gone! Been asking for this for literally 10 years, but they are finally getting there.
Use and love Note 3, but LG is getting my attention.
was a good post.
I just want to add that yes LG is doing a good job, but THe Note 3 is the same dimensions as the Note 2, but the screen size is .2 larger, and still has the physical buttons. Onscreen buttons or physical buttons, it can be done.
On screen buttons can be hidden(more and more apps now use immersion mode), replaced(pie), rearranged and incorporate additional custom buttons, they can also trigger more complex gestures(navigation rings). The possibilities are endless with on screen buttons.
physical buttons are what they are, surface area you use for them are ones you can never get back.
I hate on screen buttons. Worst google decision ever.
Yeah I'm going to wait for the note 4 too. See what it has to offer. I'm always switching back and forth between my note 3 and G2 and it drives me nuts haha. So I'm sure it'll be a tough choice.
Posted from my Galaxy Note 3, LG G2, or Nexus 7
It's speculated that the g3 may also have a stylus
I'm in the same boat!
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They already have a 5.9in display on the g pro 2. This is just 5.5. Can't wait for the G3.
Also waiting on Samsung to use their technology and not pay royalties in the next Galaxy S line lol
I'd rather have that on one of the Chromebooks being released this year. I'm not sure why manufacturer's feel the need to use such high resolution on phones with no benefit other than worse performance and battery life but refuse to go higher than 720p on 11.6 inch+ Chromebooks.
According to apple around 326 PPI is all the human eye can really make out as far as seeing pixels. Why do we need phones that are in the mid 400s or 500s now? Such a waste.
To some extent they're looking to save cost and power by not using these panels on the Chromebooks. I agree, though, as I do a lot of photography and would certainly appreciate the high-res displays as with the Pixel.
There's your mistake. You said according to apple...
Lol jk. If things look crisp on this screen I'll be happy. Technically and legally speaking cars in the US can only go a certain speed before being restricted by speed limiter. But this doesn't stop people from buying these fast cars. Just offering some prescective because some people just want the latest and greatest even if there's no huge advantage
Well said.
Off topic: To my knowledge, there is no actual law saying cars must be governed to a speed. I believe that some are to get safety ratings, etc, but not by law unlike places like Japan.
For instance, some economy cars are not limited at all, but cars like the Mustang(especially the v6 model) are for both legal and technical reasons.
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I can tell quite a big difference between my 720P Moto X at 4.7" and my 1080P Nexus 5 at 5". Everything is far more crisp on the Nexus 5. I anticipate there will be a noticeable difference between 1080P and 1440P.
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I think its harder for them to make a larger panel with no defects.
Posted via Android Central App using an LG G2.
You don't understand the science behind seeing pixels. Depending on the angle plus the distance you are viewing the display refers to if you can see pixels or not. Apparently Apple only did it probably head on and from like a foot and a half away from the face. But even then people with 20/20 vision can see pixels easily on the likes of The Droid DNA and what not. So don't believe everything Apple says.
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Nexus 6 - with QHD display?
I hope so.
Posted from my LG LS970 using my thumb
I thought Nexus was done. Now it's "Silver".
Posted via my Moto X (Sorry Nexus 5, too many issues)
Silver Nexus ;-)
I think Google might release one more Nexus line (tablet(s) and phone) this year then be done. Not 100% sure though.
2o15
... ( 0ppo F5) ...
I thought that was a rumor and nothing was ever said or confirmed by anyone at Google?
LG makes some great screens, but I wonder if this is just because they can. I hope it doesn't mean that phone screens continue to get larger.
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To some degree, yeah, the manufacturers are looking to bring their super-high-res panels to as much of the market as they can, and as soon as they can. The improvements in efficiency, color, brightness, form factor, etc. along the way will likely benefit displays of all sizes, which is good.
I'm with you though... not too enthused by the "pixels race" or simply "larger is better" aspects of device displays.
Well, if it's between pushing too fast, or not pushing fast enough, I'd prefer the former. Having a super high-res display on our phones doesn't hurt (unless maybe a particular panel affect battery negatively), however if these companies made no effort and we were still on 800x480 or 1280x720, that would suck. But like I said, better screen are not hurting anyone. I'll save my criticism for something that actually impacts my phone in a negative way.
P.S. I anticipate some are thinking "less time spent on screen tech could mean more time spent on (XYZ)". I don't agree with that line of thinking; we can't know what LG's business plan would look like in some alternate version of the past. An engineer who works on LCD panels is not just going to pick up and go work on UI for a year. Even if LG decided to cut their panel team in half and double up elsewhere, there no guarantee there would be equal progress made. Me? I'm happy getting what I get from these companies, and trust that they're manufacturing their products to the best of their abilities.
Completely agree.
This!
It affects to other great qualities of the phone, battery life and performance.
Battery life you already mention it so you are already aware of this, but performance is also affected as the processors (CPU and GPU) have to deal with 4 times the amount of pixels to process.
I don't see the point of doing a phone that has a screen larger than 5", even at that size I already find it some what uncomfortable for a one hand usage, sure girls and people with smaller hands find it even harder. But that is a personal opinion.
A 500ppi+ resolution wont be that much better than a 300ppi, you wouldn't find the difference in normal usage (or hardly on any kind of usage), and as I said, your battery and processor performance would suffer from it every second the screen is on.
As you said, I don't think LCD.engineers should be transferred to other departments, but they could be used in their same department to improve other more important topics than pixel density/resolution on small displays, example, angle views, battery consumption, better materials, less wear (as the AMLOEDs suffer), more transparent LCDs, bezel size,.....
You're right. This will do nothing but kill battery life and performance with *no* visible benefit over about 300 ppi.
At 10" the human eye can't tell the difference beyond about 320ppi. This is a total sales gimmick on a device under 6". And the sad part is that people will get excited to have a phone that has less performance and battery life because they thing "more is always better".
i agree. I just want this in a 5-5.2" panel. 5.5 is just too big IMO
But nothing wrong with putting into a new tablet :)
Yeah, I'm looking forward to LG's next tablet. Hopefully, they put a bigger battery in with the higher-res screen.
Given how dim the LG Gpad 8.3's screen is, I hope they make a big improvement with their next one.
I've never understood the criticism of the GPad 8.3's screen. I have a galaxy s4 (which is definitely too dim) and the GPad 8.3. I ordered the GPad sight unseen and was very concerned with the screen before it arrived. After using it, I think the screen is fantastic.
I typically run it at about 60% brightness level when inside and have no issue reading text when sitting outside and at full brightness. I personally love the GPad and am eagerly awaiting the G3 as my next phone and the successor to the GPad as an additional tablet.