If you’ve bought an OLED TV so far this year, you aren’t alone. Even though TV sales have generally slowed, market analysts are predicting 2021 will be the year of the OLED, with shipments of OLED screens meant to increase by 80% from 2020 (via LG).
Market research firm TrendForce expects OLED TV sales to set records this year, with “excellent image quality” being a primary factor for consumers looking to upgrade their home cinema. Another analyst firm, Omdia, believes that the huge sporting events taking place this year (such as Euro 2020 and the delayed Tokyo Olympic games) are other driving factors for those grabbing a new OLED display.
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As OLED displays become considerably cheaper, there's also been a rise in people buying OLEDs as secondary TVs in locations like bedrooms and gaming rooms. You can now consistently find OLED TVs under $1,000 / £1,000, albeit for older models or in limited flash sales. The tech is now so consumer-friendly that even the new Nintendo Switch OLED model will use an OLED display.
You also can’t ignore all the extra time we’re spending at home since the Covid-19 pandemic first hit back in 2020. More than ever we’re spending time stuck indoors, and with TVs our main source of entertainment it makes sense that people would be desperate to make sure they can achieve the best experience possible.
TrendForce predicts that these push and pull factors are what will lead to 7.1 million new OLED TVs finding their way into our homes this year. This huge increase over last year’s sales (just 3.65 million OLEDs) will mean that the displays will account for 10% of the overall global TV market by the end of 2021.
If this turns out to be correct, 2021 could be the first year in a decade that LCD screens have accounted for less than 90% of the total TV market, marking a major milestone in the downward trajectory for LCD screen sales that we’ve been seeing since 2015.
What is the best OLED TV for you?
It seems like there’s never been a better time to get an OLED than in 2021, so what are our recommendations? Well if you’re looking for the best possible experience, why not check out our best OLED TV list? You’ll find a range of prices and options for a variety of TVs from the LG C1 Series to the Vizio OLED TV.
Alternatively, if you’re on a budget, you’ll want to check out our monthly round up of the best OLED TV deals. We try to keep our selection as up to date as we can, and do our best to spot the cheapest and best OLED options out there. If there isn’t something that takes your fancy right now, be sure to check back in a week to see if there’s anything new – after all, this is the year’s everyone’s buying.
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