Why don't they make smaller OLED TVs?

Soldato
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I'm thinking I might finally replace my 8 year old 40" TV at some point and have been looking at whats available these days. I don't really want anything much bigger than I have now, and don't think I can afford OLED anyway, but why are they all 55" minimum? Maybe if they made some around 43" they'd be cheaper and I could stretch to that. Is there really no market for smaller TVs these days?
 
A few people myself included would like to know to not everybody has the size living area for anything bigger then a 55 inch i could stretch 50 nothing bigger
 
Probably because OLED still attracts a hefty price premium, and the people willing to pay that premium are generally looking for larger sizes.
 
A few people myself included would like to know to not everybody has the size living area for anything bigger then a 55 inch i could stretch 50 nothing bigger

Yeah, I mean I've nothing against large TVs, I'd happily have something massive if I had the space, but I just don't. I think like you I could probably go to about 50" at the most. I still think there must be quite a few people the same.
 
The cost of the plant to make smaller OLEDs versus the public's price-perception of what a 40"/46" 'should cost ' versus the predicted sales of these smaller sets.

When you put it all together, the company could spend millions on the plant, which would then be reflected in the price, only for consumers to say "how much? I'm not paying that! I might as well buy the bigger set, it's not that much more expensive."

It's frustrating, I know. However, the economic argument doesn't stack up to justify the costs for the relatively small number of people who would actually put their hands in their pockets and complete a purchase.
 
oled manufacturing capacity and yield improving so 55" panels cost some 40% less than a couple of years ago (earlier thread), they are getting to grips with burn in too, with further sub-pixel changes;
so they should soon be viable for laptops and monitors, that market providing people want 40" monitors (commercial+individual) should make them available for tv's too.

further out - micro led may re-democratize market for large screen sizes, so niche for oled may become the smaller <= 55" screen sizes
 
Same here, I'd like an OLED but not interested in massive screens. 45" would be perfect. 1080p would be fine.

Someone will cater to the market eventually...until then, no new TV.
 
The cost of the plant to make smaller OLEDs versus the public's price-perception of what a 40"/46" 'should cost ' versus the predicted sales of these smaller sets.

When you put it all together, the company could spend millions on the plant, which would then be reflected in the price, only for consumers to say "how much? I'm not paying that! I might as well buy the bigger set, it's not that much more expensive."

It's frustrating, I know. However, the economic argument doesn't stack up to justify the costs for the relatively small number of people who would actually put their hands in their pockets and complete a purchase.

Ah, thanks for this. My complete lack of technical knowledge here led me to think it was just a case of deciding to make some smaller panels, rather than a massive financial outlay to be able to do so. That makes sense now, though hopefully there will be demand in the future.
 
Ah, thanks for this. My complete lack of technical knowledge here led me to think it was just a case of deciding to make some smaller panels, rather than a massive financial outlay to be able to do so. That makes sense now, though hopefully there will be demand in the future.

You're welcome.

As @jpaul suggests, if a strong enough case could be made to justify data monitor screens at say 30-40" then that might be a lifeline product for the small screen TV market too. However, Dell tried with their 30" monitor which was originally pitched at £3,500 retail (+VAT?). This is the one @Jokester mentioned. They had to downgrade the spec to launch a revised model (£2500), but they still couldn't keep it in production. £2,500 for a 30" screen, even for a company as big as Dell with the volumes they can muster, it shows you the effect on proce for running smaller plant; and it's a gamble that probably cost Dell dear.

What makes all this worse is the artificially low price of LCD TVs in general. The entry-level 4K UHD TVs from LG, Philips, Hisense and the stuff badged up as Hitachi, Toshiba etc from Vestel really is stupidly cheap. It's not great quality either, but it sets a benchmark in the consumers mind when they're only reading size and the fact that it's UHD with HDR.

Samsung QLED or LG Ultra UHD sets might be worth a look for you.
 
I don't see how people don't have the space/living area for 55 and higher...do you like having a minuscule amount of your vision taken up by the TV?
I have my 55 at the bottom of my bed lol
 
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I don't see how people don't have the space/living area for 55 and higher...do you like having a minuscule amount of your vision taken up by the TV?
I have my 55 at the bottom of my bed lol

I have mine in the recess between the chimney breast and the front wall. In theory I could rearrange the room and have it elsewhere, but I like it there and I really don't feel the need for something much bigger. Maybe its because I'm oldish and grew up in a time when a 24" CRT was normal... Having said that, if I was still in my previous house I'd probably go larger, it was a new build with no pointless chimney breast, just a nice flat wall.

Not that I'm sure why I'm explaining myself...
 
I don't see how people don't have the space/living area for 55 and higher...do you like having a minuscule amount of your vision taken up by the TV?
I have my 55 at the bottom of my bed lol

It's not a question of space, it's just that TV viewing isn't the primary use case for my living room. It's used more for relaxing, reading, listening to music, and I don't want a giant TV dominating the room. A bigger TV would ruin my setup :P That wall is half the length of the living space, so plenty of room.

Setup here :

https://forums.overclockers.co.uk/posts/31772242

I would quite like a *better* TV, I just don't want a *bigger* one. And at that size and viewing distance, I definitely do not need 4k.
 
Same here, I'd like an OLED but not interested in massive screens. 45" would be perfect. 1080p would be fine.

Someone will cater to the market eventually...until then, no new TV.

40" oled would be ideal for me as it would just about fit.

Aint gonna happen though, well not here anyway. 1080p & smaller tellies would be a step backwards for the telly market, especially when 8K tellies will arrive in the next couple of years. The Global telly market is geared for the yanks these days & they always think that bigger is better. Turn back the clock 20 years to my electrical retail days, largest telly back then was 37" for CRT & 56" for rear projection, No HD back then let alone 4k. I did see a Sony 100" telly in Harrods this weekend for £60k!!

For me - tellies have never been better value, especially when the previous years tellies have been reduced to clear. I also saw a 55B7 reduced to clear in Peter Jones (also this weekend) for £1250. Thats cheap as chips if you are willing to buy ex-display that's probably been on 10 hours a day, 7 days a week for best part of a year.
 
40" oled would be ideal for me as it would just about fit.

Aint gonna happen though, well not here anyway. 1080p & smaller tellies would be a step backwards for the telly market, especially when 8K tellies will arrive in the next couple of years. The Global telly market is geared for the yanks these days & they always think that bigger is better. Turn back the clock 20 years to my electrical retail days, largest telly back then was 37" for CRT & 56" for rear projection, No HD back then let alone 4k. I did see a Sony 100" telly in Harrods this weekend for £60k!!

For me - tellies have never been better value, especially when the previous years tellies have been reduced to clear. I also saw a 55B7 reduced to clear in Peter Jones (also this weekend) for £1250. Thats cheap as chips if you are willing to buy ex-display that's probably been on 10 hours a day, 7 days a week for best part of a year.

Someone will cater to the market for smaller OLED screens eventually, I'm not in a hurry. Maybe when someone starts making monitor-sized OLED panels and gets costs down that'll solve the problem.
 
It's not a question of space, it's just that TV viewing isn't the primary use case for my living room. It's used more for relaxing, reading, listening to music, and I don't want a giant TV dominating the room. A bigger TV would ruin my setup :p That wall is half the length of the living space, so plenty of room.

Setup here :

https://forums.overclockers.co.uk/posts/31772242

I would quite like a *better* TV, I just don't want a *bigger* one. And at that size and viewing distance, I definitely do not need 4k.

Okay ^^
Heres mine http://i67.tinypic.com/2hgqucw.jpg
No fancy stuff till I move out (soon yey) and can do a proper setup in the front room with proper speakers etc...
But I still will be sitting that close lol creates a immersive viewing experience :D
 
Some one asked this question last year and if i remember correctly its all down to production costs and also the size of the panels produced in the factory.

I am sure smaller models will come eventually but OLED is still only young tech still.

Owner off a 55"C6 btw :)
 
It's not a question of space, it's just that TV viewing isn't the primary use case for my living room. It's used more for relaxing, reading, listening to music, and I don't want a giant TV dominating the room. A bigger TV would ruin my setup :p That wall is half the length of the living space, so plenty of room.

Setup here :

https://forums.overclockers.co.uk/posts/31772242

I would quite like a *better* TV, I just don't want a *bigger* one. And at that size and viewing distance, I definitely do not need 4k.

See that just looks odd to me, like a weird small tv stuck on a large cabinet, like you get in a travel lodge :P I would defo be having a massive tv centered on that cabinet :O
 
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