Skip to Content

What Is The Refresh Rate On A OLED TV?

As an owner of an OLED TV, I know how frustrating it can be to not understand the technical lingo of the industry. I recently had to figure out what the refresh rate on my OLED TV was, so I did some research and testing to figure it out. In this blog post, I’m here to share what I discovered and to provide some other solutions to help you understand the refresh rate on an OLED TV.

Most OLED TVs have refresh rates of 120Hz. Some older models, however, have refresh rates of 60Hz, and specific newer models can reach resolutions of up to 144Hz. Manufacturers use supplementary techniques which are not as effective as higher refresh rates to boost performance.

Tips
Most OLED TVs have refresh rates of 120Hz.
Higher refresh rates can provide smoother images and less blurring in objects that appear to be moving quickly.
OLED TVs offer higher resolution and cleaner graphics compared to other TV types.
Manufacturers may use motion smoothing techniques to imitate the effects of refresh rate, but they are not as effective.
To determine the actual native refresh rate of a TV set, you can look up the value on a website like Amazon or by hooking the set up to your laptop.

The Refresh Rate Of A TV And Viewing Quality

As a general rule, the viewing quality of a TV increases when the refresh rate increases. Since the refresh rate measures how often the recreation of images on the screen occurs, the difference in clarity will be more noticeable in some cases than others, primarily when the broadcast material includes fast movement.

The refresh rate of a TV is also loosely related to the frames per second of the input material, as the higher the refresh rate, the more frames it can display. When the refresh rate of a screen doesn’t reach the broadcast number of frames, the image may become blurry.

The human brain perceives successive frames as motion, and faster movements are harder to capture in fewer frames.

Motion perception is significant for materials that involve a higher pace, such as live-action sports, and video games, where the player’s reactions highly depend on what the screen can display.

Refresh Rates And Picture Quality Effects For OLED TVs

For most OLED TVs, the refresh rate is 120Hz. In some cases, this might be higher, but these are higher-end expensive sets.

Some TVs, however, claim a higher refresh rate than they have, and one must be wary when buying a new unit. The trick manufacturers play involves using motion smoothing techniques that imitate the effects of refresh rate, but they are not as effective.

Manufacturers use several methods to try and manipulate the perceived refresh rate of their TV. Typically, the screens use techniques that change the lighting settings of the TV or insert improvised frames.

OLED TVs, Black-frame Insertion, And Lighting Effects

Since OLED (Organic Light-Emitting Diodes) TVs use no external light sources, their backlighting cannot be changed, as the diodes inherently create their light.

The diodes are turned off for black images, completing a darker, purer form of black than other TV set types. LCD and LED screens occasionally insert black frames to clear the screen, imitating screen refresh rates.

Because of the self-lighting feature of OLED TVs, they provide higher resolution and cleaner graphics. OLED diodes are smaller, which means more of them can be fitted into the same screen size, increasing pixel count.

The diodes’ time to activate in OLED TVs is also lower than those of other TV sets, thus increasing the image update rate.

Another consequence of OLED TV diode self-lighting is a reduced eye strain people often experience when watching TV for extended periods. The non-reliance on backlighting leads to lower overall light emission and a decrease in blue light that can harm viewers’ eyes and cause sleep disturbances. Combined with higher refresh rates, this makes for more comfortable viewing.

OLED TVs And Improvised Frame Insertion Techniques

Improvised frames for TV sets rely on a technique called interpolation. With interpolation, the TV internal computing hardware analyzes the difference between two successive frames and inserts a frame between them as an approximation of movement, reducing blurring on the TV.

But often, interpolation is used to claim higher refresh rates for a set than they can reach.

There are also some drawbacks with interpolation activity that make many people choose to disable the feature on their TV. When a screen is too cluttered and two frames differ substantially, the interpretation of the scene can be more difficult, resulting in slower frame rates or jumps in the image.

How To Find Out What The Refresh Rate Of Your OLED TV Is

Since there are many different marketing ploys where manufacturers may even outright deceive people into buying their TV, it is worthwhile for consumers to know which specifications they should be looking for. While added effects might be beneficial, they are not as effective as increased refresh rates. So, customers should be wary of deceptive effective refresh rates.

Thus, a TV set’s key characteristic is the native refresh rate. Unfortunately, many manufacturers neglect to specify the refresh rates of their TV sets on their websites or the products themselves. So, to see the actual native refresh rate, you will need to find it yourself.

Researching The Refresh Rate Of An OLED TV On A Webstore

The first option you would want to consider when buying a TV set is browsing for information online.

Manufacturers seemingly wish to hide the refresh rate, so you should use other sources. Online stores like Amazon will list the product specifications for TVs and include the refresh rate.

Looking Up The Refresh Rate Of An OLED TV Using Your PC

A second option if you want to see the refresh rate of an OLED TV set is to hook it up to a laptop or desktop computer.

The drawback of this method is that you will probably only be able to do this if you already own the screen in question, so you can’t research a screen in this manner before buying it.

Using the Windows operating system, navigate to the “Display” settings and choose the OLED TV set. Under “Advanced display settings,” you can click on the drop-down menu listed under “Refresh rate,” and it will show the maximum refresh rate of the display device.

If you are using a Mac operating system, you can check the refresh rate by going to the Apple menu and choosing “Display” under “System Preferences,” after which you hold down the “Option” key and click on “Scaled.” If the OLED TV is the screen currently connected to the PC, the display will then report its refresh rate.

Conclusion

The refresh rate of a TV set is one of the most important visual characteristics of the screen, as it determines how sharp and realistic the imaging and the appearance of movement will be.

At 120Hz, OLED TVs can deliver bright and clear images that will improve the experience of watching high-paced materials, such as sports, and your performance in video games.

As manufacturers often try to attract shoppers to buy their products, they use techniques that imitate refresh rate effects and market them as higher refresh rates. To determine the actual native refresh rate of a TV set, you can look up the value on a website like Amazon or by hooking the set up to your laptop.

Read more: What is a USB port for?

References

https://www.cnet.com/tech/home-entertainment/4k-and-8k-tv-refresh-rates-from-60hz-to-120hz-everything-you-should-know/

https://www.diffen.com/difference/120hz_vs_60hz

https://www.rtings.com/tv/learn/what-is-the-refresh-rate-60hz-vs-120hz

https://www.techradar.com/news/lg-oled-tvs-will-soon-get-rid-of-the-soap-opera-effect-for-amazon-prime-movies

https://www.tomsguide.com/opinion/tv-refresh-rates-how-to-see-through-the-tv-industrys-biggest-lie