Updated for 2026 · reviewed
TV buying guide · 2026 edition

Every TV is one of two things. The rest is branding.

Neo QLED, QNED, ULED, Bravia, Micro RGB, True RGB, SQD — the names multiply every year, but underneath there are still just two kinds of panel: an LCD with a backlight, or an OLED that lights itself. This guide explains each variation with diagrams, decodes what every brand calls it, and helps you pick the kind that suits your room. No models, no prices — just how it works.

The two families

LCD

LCD family

↑ to the viewer

A backlight shines through a liquid-crystal "shutter" layer. Every variation — LED, QLED, Mini-LED, RGB — is a different backlight or colour layer in front of the same shutter.

Older → newer. Every name on a box belongs to one of these.

OLED

OLED family

↑ to the viewer

No backlight. Each pixel makes its own light and can switch fully off, so blacks are perfect. The variations differ in how the pixel makes colour and how bright it can get.

Older → newer. Every name on a box belongs to one of these.

The one rule that survives all the marketing: QLED, Mini-LED, RGB and "Micro RGB" are all LCDs — they differ in the backlight and colour layer. OLED, QD-OLED and Tandem OLED are all OLEDs — they differ in how the pixel makes colour and how bright it gets. See every layer →

Help me choose

Three questions decide most of it: how bright the room is when you watch (dark or dim, mixed, bright), what is on most of the time (movies & series, sports, gaming, news & daytime tv, a bit of everything) and your budget tier. Turn on JavaScript for the interactive version; the rule of thumb for a mid-range budget is:

Recommended technology by room and use, mid-range budget.
RoomMovies & seriesSportsGamingNews & daytime TVA bit of everything
Dark or dimW-OLEDW-OLEDW-OLEDW-OLEDW-OLED
MixedW-OLEDW-OLEDW-OLEDMini-LEDW-OLED
BrightMini-LEDMini-LEDMini-LEDMini-LEDMini-LED

Quick picks by situation

Budget & casual

A spare room, a kitchen, a TV that is rarely the centre of attention.

Any direct-lit LED from a platform brand does the job; skip edge-lit unless it is for a garage.

Names to look for: Samsung Crystal UHD · LG UHD / UR series · Sony Bravia 3 / Bravia 5 · TCL S series

Everyday value

The main TV for most households.

A QLED with full-array local dimming is the sweet spot — make sure the spec sheet says local dimming.

Names to look for: Samsung QLED · LG NanoCell · Sony Triluminos · TCL Q series (QLED)

Bright rooms

Big windows, daytime sport, an open-plan space.

Mini-LED brightness beats OLED in sunlight, and there is no burn-in to think about.

Names to look for: Samsung Neo QLED · LG QNED · Sony Bravia 3 / Bravia 5 · TCL QM series (QD-Mini LED)

Cinematic & dark rooms

Film nights, curtains drawn, gaming.

Perfect blacks and instant motion. QD-OLED adds colour punch; W-OLED comes in more sizes.

Names to look for: Samsung OLED (S9 series) · LG OLED evo (B / C series) · Sony Bravia 8 · Panasonic Z series (OLED)

Cutting edge

Enthusiasts who want the newest panel.

All three arrived in the last year or so. Wait for independent reviews before paying flagship money.

Names to look for: Samsung Micro RGB · LG Micro RGB evo · Sony True RGB · TCL RGB Mini-LED

Read the guide

ChapterTechnologiesAll 10 panel types, layer by layer, with animated diagrams, strengths, trade-offs and what each is best for.ChapterBrand namesBrand by brand: what each marketing name means and which technology is inside.ChapterDecoderType any name and see the real technology — or pick a technology and see what every brand calls it.ChapterComparePut up to four technologies side by side on blacks, brightness, colour, angles, burn-in, halo, motion and price tier.

What changed

This guide is dated on purpose. New panel technologies arrive every year and brand names get reshuffled, so each revision is recorded here and the badge at the top of every page shows the last review date.

  1. First edition. LCD family (edge-lit, direct-lit, QLED, Mini-LED, RGB Mini-LED, Micro RGB, SQD-MiniLED) and OLED family (W-OLED, QD-OLED, Tandem OLED); brand-name decoder for Samsung, LG, Sony, TCL, Hisense, Panasonic, Roku, Amazon Fire TV and Vizio.

About TV buying guide

A buying guide for people who want to understand what they are paying for before they walk into a store. It explains the two families every modern TV belongs to (LCD with a backlight, and self-emitting OLED), every variation you will see in 2026, and decodes the marketing names each manufacturer uses for the same technology. It deliberately does not list models, specifications or prices.

  • Technology explainers with animated layer diagrams showing where the light comes from and how colour is made.
  • A brand-name decoder: type a name like Neo QLED, QNED, ULED, Bravia, Micro RGB or True RGB and see the real panel technology behind it.
  • Brand pages for Samsung, LG, Sony, TCL, Hisense, Panasonic, Roku, Amazon Fire TV and Vizio with links to their official sites.
  • Side-by-side comparison of any technologies on black level, brightness, colour, viewing angle, burn-in risk, blooming, motion and typical price tier.
  • A short "help me choose" that turns your room, what you watch and your budget into a recommended technology and the names to look for.
  • Dated: every page shows when it was last reviewed, and a changelog records what changed as new technology arrives.

Frequently asked questions

Is QLED a type of OLED?

No. QLED is an LCD with a quantum-dot colour film in front of a backlight. OLED has no backlight — each pixel makes its own light and can switch fully off. The similar names are marketing; the technologies are unrelated.

Are Neo QLED, QNED, ULED and Bravia different technologies?

They are brand names, not technologies. Neo QLED is Samsung's name for mini-LED with quantum dots; QNED is LG's LCD range (only some models have mini-LED); ULED is Hisense's umbrella for its premium LCDs; Bravia is simply Sony's TV brand and covers LCD and OLED alike. The decoder page maps each name to what is inside.

What are RGB Mini-LED, Micro RGB and True RGB?

The same new idea under three names: a mini-LED LCD whose backlight uses separate red, green and blue LEDs instead of white or blue ones, so colour is made in the backlight with no conversion loss. Samsung says Micro RGB, Sony says True RGB, Hisense and TCL say RGB Mini-LED. None of them is Micro-LED.

Which is better, OLED or Mini-LED?

It depends on the room. OLED wins on black level, viewing angle and motion, so it is the pick for dim rooms and film nights. Mini-LED is far brighter with no burn-in risk, so it wins in sunlit rooms, for sport and for anything that leaves static content on screen for hours. The "help me choose" on the overview page walks through the trade-off.

Does this guide recommend specific models or prices?

No. It has no live product data, so it stays at the level of technologies and the series names brands use for them, and links you to each manufacturer's official site. Use it to decide what kind of TV you want, then compare current models in independent reviews.

How current is the information?

Every page shows the date it was last reviewed, and the changelog on the overview lists what changed. The guide is revised as new panel technologies reach the market.