Today we have news that Samsung has patented 'SAMOLED', a nomenclature that, although it does not reveal much about what it means, leaves on the table a new proposal for Samsung panels in 2020. Taking advantage of the addition of another term, no It is a bad thing to review the Samsung technologies that we do know, since it is easy to get confused between so many names.
Samsung patents SAMOLED, a nomenclature that joins the existing ones
While all Samsung screens are OLED, the company names them in one way or another based on their characteristics. As we read on Letsgodigital, Samsung has patented the SAMOLED brand, describing it as 'OLED screen, smartphone screen, television screen monitor, digital signage, computer screen'. Thus, Samsung ensures that it can use this brand throughout its range of products.
Questions remain as to whether 'SAMOLED' is the abbreviation for Super AMOLED or if it is a completely new technology.
As we said, there are no details about what exactly SAMOLED is, so there are doubts about whether it will be a completely new panel, or simply it is the abbreviation of 'Super AMOLED', one of the best known technologies in terms of OLED panels. . What we do know is what the rest of the names that the company uses on its phones mean.
OLED
Before establishing the differences between AMOLED, SuperAMOLED and others, it is good to know the "mother technology", the OLED. OLED (organic light emitting diode) technology is what its name suggests, panels whose pixels are illuminated with a light emitting diode for each pixel.
OLED panels have diodes that illuminate the different pixels. Thus, contrast and energy efficiency are increased.
Not depending on a matrix of light that illuminates the entire panel (as in the LCD), allows pure blacks, since the diodes do not illuminate those pixels that show black, they are off and, therefore, that part of the panel that shows the black one is too. Being composed of organic material they suffer greater degradation, although manufacturers have been improving over the years to minimize it.
Currently, most flagships have an OLED panel (in its different variants), with Apple being one of the latest brands to join these technologies with its iPhone X.
AMOLED
As for AMOLED screens (active matrix organic light emitting diode), they are widely used in mobile phones. The main difference with OLED screens is that AMOLEDs have an active organic middle layer. On paper, this technology consumes less energy and is more flexible.
The difference between AMOLED and Super AMOLED is, mainly, that Super AMOLED screens have an integrated layer inside the screen to recognize touch functions, while in AMOLED touch functions would be recognized only through the upper part of said screen. .
Here there are doubts about said extra layer with touch functions and whether or not they are included in more phones that do not call their screens as Super AMOLED, with a clear example in Apple.
This point is somewhat controversial, since manufacturers like Apple have the best Samsung panels in their high-end devices, so it is more than likely that they have this layer, and that they do not use the Super AMOLED nomenclature for marketing reasons.
Dynamic AMOLED
Finally, Samsung tells us about Dynamic AMOLED, the screen technology used in devices like the Samsung Galaxy Fold. The company says that these screens have been present since the Samsung Galaxy S10.
These panels are HDR10 + certified, focus on reducing eye fatigue by controlling the blue light emitted by the screen, have a 2,000,000: 1 contrast ratio, and better cover the DCI-P3 color spectrum.
In short, they are the highest quality AMOLEDs from Samsung, and they have been given another name to differentiate them from the rest. Thus, it remains to be seen if SAMOLED is its abbreviation, or if it is an improved panel in several respects that well deserves a new nomenclature.