The Display Reality Index
The Display Reality Index is PanelPicks' normalized reference dataset for TV and monitor panel technology: one versioned set of tables that separates actual panel physics from brand marketing names, so a claim like "120Hz" or "QLED" or "HDR10+" can be checked against what it actually means rather than what a spec sheet implies. Every row here is drawn from and cross-checked against our published guides (linked inline) and is reviewed on a fixed schedule — see methodology and versioning below.
A machine-readable copy is available as CSV: display-reality-index.csv. A permanent version-pinned snapshot is at display-reality-index-v1.0.csv — versioned snapshots are never modified after publication; the unversioned CSV always reflects the current release and is the canonical link to cite.
License: CC BY 4.0 — free to use with attribution. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/
How to cite:
PanelPicks Editorial Team. (2026). Display Reality Index (Version 1.0) [Data set]. PanelPicks. https://panelpicks.com/reality-index/
Panel technology comparison
The four panel technologies that actually ship in TVs and monitors today, normalized on the same axes. QDEL (electroluminescent quantum dots, also called NanoLED or EL-QD) is not in this table because it does not yet ship in any consumer TV or monitor — see the marketing-term decoder below for how it's often confused with QD-OLED, which does ship.
| Feature | WOLED | QD-OLED | Mini-LED QLED | Standard QLED-LCD |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Architecture | OLED: white emitter + RGB filters + white subpixel | OLED: blue emitter + quantum-dot conversion | LCD: mini-LED backlight + quantum-dot film | LCD: LED backlight + quantum-dot film |
| Emissive? | Yes — per-pixel | Yes — per-pixel | No — backlight + LC shutter | No — backlight + LC shutter |
| Peak Brightness Class | Moderate (OLED-class) | Moderate-to-high (OLED-class) | Very high | High |
| Burn-In Risk Class | Small long-term risk with static content | Small long-term risk with static content | None | None |
| Viewing Angle | Widest available | Widest available | Narrower; shifts off-axis | Narrower; shifts off-axis |
| Color Volume at High Brightness | Diluted by white subpixel at high brightness | Holds saturation better than WOLED at high brightness | Strong at high brightness (no ABL to manage) | Strong at high brightness (no ABL to manage) |
Full physics explanation: how TV display panels actually work. Head-to-head detail: OLED vs QLED and QD-OLED vs WOLED.
Marketing-term decoder
Brand and marketing names do not map one-to-one onto panel technology. This table resolves the terms buyers actually see on spec sheets and in ads to the underlying panel tech.
| Marketing Term | Underlying Panel Tech | Ships in Consumer TVs Today? |
|---|---|---|
| QLED | LCD with a quantum-dot film improving backlight color — still a transmissive LCD panel | Yes |
| Neo QLED / Mini-LED QLED | LCD with a mini-LED backlight (more, smaller dimming zones) plus quantum-dot film | Yes |
| OLED (generic) | Umbrella term covering both WOLED and QD-OLED — always emissive | Yes |
| QD-OLED | OLED panel: blue OLED emitter converted to red/green by photoluminescent quantum dots. Made by Samsung Display. | Yes |
| WOLED / "OLED evo" / "OLED.EX" | OLED panel: white OLED emitter + RGB color filters + white subpixel. Made by LG Display. | Yes |
| QDEL / NanoLED / EL-QD | Quantum dots driven directly by electricity (electroluminescent), no OLED layer at all | No — prototype-stage; not in any shipping consumer TV as of 2026 |
| MicroLED | Microscopic inorganic LEDs, one per subpixel — genuinely emissive, distinct from all of the above | Yes, but only in very large, very expensive installations |
| ULED (Hisense) | Hisense's marketing label for its LCD picture-processing stack, typically paired with mini-LED or quantum-dot backlighting | Yes |
The single most common conflation to watch for: QD-OLED and QDEL are not the same technology. QD-OLED ships in TVs and monitors today and uses quantum dots to convert light already produced by a blue OLED emitter. QDEL has no OLED layer at all and does not yet ship in any consumer television.
HDR format truth
| Format | Metadata | Licensing |
|---|---|---|
| HDR10 | Static (one brightness/color target for the entire piece of content) | Open, royalty-free; the mandatory baseline HDR format |
| HDR10+ | Dynamic (metadata can change scene-by-scene or frame-by-frame) | Royalty-free; backed primarily by Samsung and Amazon |
| Dolby Vision | Dynamic (metadata can change scene-by-scene or frame-by-frame) | Licensed, proprietary to Dolby; widest studio/streaming adoption |
All three are compatible in the sense that a TV supporting HDR10+ or Dolby Vision also supports base HDR10 as a fallback. The practical difference dynamic metadata makes: static HDR10 metadata is tuned once for the brightest scene in a piece of content, so darker scenes can be under-optimized; dynamic metadata in HDR10+ and Dolby Vision can retarget brightness and color scene-by-scene, which matters most on displays with limited peak brightness.
Refresh rate and gaming truth
| Spec | What it actually means |
|---|---|
| Native / real 120Hz | The panel itself physically refreshes up to 120 times per second — required to display genuine 120fps source content without loss. |
| Interpolated / processed refresh (e.g. "effective 120Hz") | A lower native panel refresh rate combined with motion-processing (frame interpolation/black-frame insertion) to simulate smoothness. It does not accept or display a genuine 120fps signal the same way native 120Hz does — check the panel's native refresh rate, not just the marketing number. |
| VRR (Variable Refresh Rate) | The display's refresh rate matches the source's variable frame rate in real time, eliminating screen tearing and reducing stutter. Requires both the display and the source (console/GPU) to support it. |
| HDMI 2.1 (48Gbps) | The bandwidth needed for uncompressed 4K at 120Hz plus VRR. HDMI 2.0 tops out around 4K/60Hz with no VRR support. Many TVs only wire full 48Gbps to one or two of their HDMI ports even when "HDMI 2.1" appears on the spec sheet — the port matters, not just the spec sheet. |
| ALLM (Auto Low Latency Mode) | Automatically switches the display into its lowest-latency picture mode (Game Mode) when it detects a console/PC signal requesting it, removing the need to switch manually. |
Full buying checklist: best TV for gaming (PS5 & Xbox Series X).
Methodology & versioning
Version 1.0 — published July 30, 2026. Every row in this dataset is derived from PanelPicks' own published, dated guides (linked inline throughout this page), which are themselves checked against manufacturer documentation and independent testing (e.g. RTINGS' accelerated longevity testing) at the time each guide is written or updated. Where we could not verify a claim to our own standard, we omitted it rather than guess — this dataset does not include exact prices, model-specific benchmark numbers, or any claim we have not independently traced to a source.
Correction policy: this page and its CSV are updated whenever a source guide changes, and whenever a factual error is reported. Version numbers increment on any change to the underlying data (not on cosmetic edits); the "Published" date above reflects the most recent verification pass. To report an error, use the contact information on our homepage.
Caveats: panel technology moves quickly — brand lineups, marketing names, and even which zones/technology a specific model uses can change between TV generations (sometimes within the same model name across years). This dataset describes the technology categories themselves, not any specific model's implementation; always confirm the panel technology of a specific model before purchase, since marketing names are not always applied consistently by manufacturers year to year.
Citing this dataset
Name: Display Reality Index. Publisher: PanelPicks. Canonical URL: https://panelpicks.com/reality-index/. Machine-readable distribution: https://panelpicks.com/display-reality-index.csv.
Also see the site's companion named dataset, covering projector brightness, throw ratio, and resolution claims: the Projector Lumens Truth Index.