TCL says 130-inch and possibly even near-150-inch LED TVs may be coming soon, thanks to its latest display manufacturing methods, as reported by FlatpanelsHD.
Despite recently introducing a 115-inch 4K mini-LED TV to the market (see picture above) – which will be known as the 115QM891G in the US, or X955K Max in the UK/Europe/Australia and boast a 6.2.2 Onkyo speaker system to rival the best TVs for sound and 5,000 nits, brighter than any of the best TVs available– TCL is already thinking about even larger sets.
TCL CSOT, the manufacturing arm of the company (which also sells these screens to other manufacturers), develops its 115-inch screens using what it calls Generation 11, or 11G, factories – an upgrade on its Generation 8.5, or 8.5G, factories used to develop its 98-inch panels. TCL says that bigger screens are possible in the 11G factory, which manufactures even larger panels (called ‘mother glass’) that can be cut into two 130-inch screens.
TCL even said a massive 148-inch screen could be possible in the future, again in the 11G factory, although it did note that it would be significantly pricier than a 115-inch or 130-inch screen. To give you an idea, the 115-inch TCL QM891G/X955K Max will set you back about $20,000 / £24,999 / AU$30,000, so anything bigger than this is likely to come at a serious premium.
Bigger screens for less
It’s worth mentioning that this isn’t the biggest screen TCL has developed, because it revealed the X11H Max in China earlier this year – a mammoth 163-inch micro-LED TV, which is a more advanced TV tech than the LCD/LED screens we’re talking about for the 130-inch and 148-inch screens.
TCL isn’t the only brand to release a big screen, as LG and Samsung also have big micro-LED sets, with LG’s 136-inch luxury micro-LED with B&O speakers making waves.
The issue with micro-LED is its price. The 163-inch TCL X11H Max carries a price of 800,000 Yuan, which is roughly $100,000 / £85,000 – and this set currently shows no sign of heading west. The price for the LG 136-inch? An eye-watering $300,000.
When TCL introduced 98-inch TVs to the market several years ago, it must have seemed these would never be affordable. But its 98-inch sets are already plummeting in price, with the entry-level P745 retailing for under £2,000 in the UK and the TCL Q Series retailing for under $2,500. More brands are also jumping on the 98-inch bandwagon, with LG, Samsung and Sony all having launched sets – and, fun fact, all have a TCL panel because TCL CSOT develops all 98-inch panels. Even some of the best OLED TVs come in a 97-inch size nowadays.
With this in mind, it’s likely only a matter of time before TCL’s 115-inch LED TVs drop in price, and that $20,000 will slide towards the prices of the 98-inch models. Perhaps in a few years, 130-inch TVs will get ‘budget’ options too…
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james.davidson@futurenet.com (James Davidson)
