Samsung Changes Pixel Layout…Will You Notice?
Samsung Display, the supplier of foldable displays for parent Samsung Electronics’ upcoming Galaxy Z Fold 3 smartphone has indicated that they have changed the pixel layout on the new phone’s display from what has been called the Diamond pixel layout, consisting of green ovals and larger red and blue diamond shaped sub-pixels, to a new layout called “Round Diamond Pixel™”, that gives the display a new name, Eco2 OLED.
Unless you take a microscope to the Z Fold 3 (when it is released later this month), you would not notice any difference in the way the phone looks, other than the fact that it might seem a bit brighter. Samsung Display says that the new pixel arrangement eliminates the need for a polarizer that normally is used to reduce the amount of light that is reflected by the display, but also blocks some of the light coming from the display itself. The new pixel arrangement eliminates the need for the polarizer, which SDC increases the transmittance of the display by 33%. Such an increase, when throttled to the light levels of previous displays, would result in a power saving of 25%, so as a user, you will likely see less of difference in the display but an improvement in battery life.
That said, since the display is not the only power consuming component of a smartphone that 25% battery life improvement will likely not magically appear, but will be partially absorbed by other components that designers will add, knowing they have a bit more overall power to use. As the new pixel arrangement allows the removal of the polarizer, the under display camera, also a new feature of the Fold 3, is able to gather more light, making it easier for the camera to work properly and avoiding pixel structure changes over the camera that have been the bane of other embedded camera systems. Of course there is no free lunch, and the production cost of the new pixel arrangement, the first change for SDC since 2013, will be higher, even though resolution and ppi (pixels/inch) will remain the same. Perhaps the lack of a charger in the Galaxy Z Fold 3 box will help cover some of that extra cost…
Unless you take a microscope to the Z Fold 3 (when it is released later this month), you would not notice any difference in the way the phone looks, other than the fact that it might seem a bit brighter. Samsung Display says that the new pixel arrangement eliminates the need for a polarizer that normally is used to reduce the amount of light that is reflected by the display, but also blocks some of the light coming from the display itself. The new pixel arrangement eliminates the need for the polarizer, which SDC increases the transmittance of the display by 33%. Such an increase, when throttled to the light levels of previous displays, would result in a power saving of 25%, so as a user, you will likely see less of difference in the display but an improvement in battery life.
That said, since the display is not the only power consuming component of a smartphone that 25% battery life improvement will likely not magically appear, but will be partially absorbed by other components that designers will add, knowing they have a bit more overall power to use. As the new pixel arrangement allows the removal of the polarizer, the under display camera, also a new feature of the Fold 3, is able to gather more light, making it easier for the camera to work properly and avoiding pixel structure changes over the camera that have been the bane of other embedded camera systems. Of course there is no free lunch, and the production cost of the new pixel arrangement, the first change for SDC since 2013, will be higher, even though resolution and ppi (pixels/inch) will remain the same. Perhaps the lack of a charger in the Galaxy Z Fold 3 box will help cover some of that extra cost…
Samsung Diamond Pixel Arrangement - Source: Samsung Display
Samsung Eco2 Pixel Arrangement - Source: LetsGoDigital
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