VESA introduces True Black HDR standard for emissive displays
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Editor
| 04 January 2019

With the concept of screen burn in back on the scene, prompting a look at advanced display technologies, the Video Electronics Standards Association (VESA) has introduced its new DisplayHDR True Black high dynamic range (HDR) standard.

A variant on VESA’s high-performance monitor and display compliance test specification (DisplayHDR), The new standard has been optimised for emissive display technologies, including organic light emitting diode (OLED) and future microLED displays.

On LCD displays, what is considered black is actually a dark grey tone, which VESA says is a result of minor light leakage common with these displays. VESA defined the new DisplayHDR True Black specification with emissive displays in mind to bring the permissible black level down to 0.0005 cd/m2 – the lowest level that it believes can be effectively measured with industry-standard colorimeters. For those watching in subdued lighting environments, displays adhering to the DisplayHDR True Black specification are, said VESA, able to gain accurate shadow detail and ‘dramatic’ increases in dynamic range up to 50X depending on lighting condition.

In addition, VESA called DisplayHDR and DisplayHDR True Black the display industry’s first fully open standards specifying HDR quality for LCD and emissive displays, respectively. Since its introduction a year ago, VESA’s DisplayHDR standard has seen adoption among LCD display OEMs and to date, nearly three dozen displays across nine OEMs have been released to market with such certification.

With the introduction of the new DisplayHDR True Black standard, VESA anticipates a similarly strong adoption curve among OLED display OEMs as has occurred with the DisplayHDR standard. DisplayHDR True Black is said to allow for up to 100X deeper black levels in addition to a greater dynamic range and a 4X improvement in rise time, the amount of time it takes for an image on a display to change from black to white, compared with VESA’s DisplayHDR 1000 performance tier.

VESA also announced that it has added a new performance level to both the DisplayHDR and the DisplayHDR True Black standards to address the need for thin, ultra-lightweight HDR laptops. The new 500 level includes local dimming as well as the same colour gamut, black level and bit-depth requirements associated with the 600 and 1000 levels with a small decrease in luminance compared to the 600 level, to bring about better thermal control in displays for super-thin notebooks. While the new 500 level is optimised for very small, ultra-slim displays, it also applies to all resolutions and screen sizes

“Embracing the new DisplayHDR True Black standard, OLED is the ideal display technology for mixing bright highlights with deep, true blacks, so consumers can create extraordinary content or simply appreciate incredibly breath-taking imagery on their PCs,” said Jeremy Yun, vice president, OLED marketing team, Samsung Display Company. “The new standard, when coupled with VESA’s DisplayHDR logo programme, will show consumers that True Black represents a highly important step in enhancing gaming, TV or movie watching, as well as viewing and editing of photos and videos. Users can see and feel a dynamic range that yields a superior high-end HDR experience.”