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AMOLED display technology: limited life span

KlaymenDK

KlaymenDK

Android Expert
Hey, while discussing the Galaxy with a coworker today, he mentioned that OLED displays 'wear out'. That was the first I have heard of it, so I looked it up.

From Wikipedia's OLED page:
The biggest technical problem for OLEDs is the limited lifetime of the organic materials. In particular, blue OLEDs historically have had a lifetime of around 14,000 hours (5 years at 8 hours a day) when used for flat-panel displays, which is lower than typical lifetime of LCD, LED or PDP technology
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The Wikipedia page is talking about OLED diplays. AMOLEDs are more refined. I'll try and find some wear and tear stats, but I wouldn't be surprised if they last longer.

Plus 5 years for a phone is quite a lot. (do you use your phone with the screen on 8 hours a day?). At a max I would guess four hours, but that's still a lot, so really the expected life is closer to 10 years, which is more than enough in my opinion.
 
This is what I found on the quick:

The lifespan of the material itself draws near 10,000 hours already, and it has been developing by more than 30% every year; it is expected to achieve 40,000 hours of lifespan in year 2005 when AMOLED is regularized.
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Source: Samsung

As it's 2009 now, I wouldn't be surprised if AMOLED has an even longer lifespan now.

EDIT: Samsung wants 50 000 by 2009 according to a 2007 article where they have 20 000 hour displays already (Source)

EDIT2: A 2007 news article claiming 30 000 hour life spans for AMOLEDs.

.
 
Oh I quite agree, I don't think we'll see end-of-life events before we tire of the devices. And, even 4h/day seems like a high bar.

I just wanted to mention this aging aspect, because it was news to me. :cool:
 
Sorry, I didn't mean to say that you didn't have a valid point. It's good to make people aware of these things. I just really like researching things and backing it up with evidence (I can't help it, I have just completed a science degree at uni).

It's just that I think you will have broken the phone, the battery will be flat, or any other combination of things before you have to worry about the screen going on you. Or you bought a new handset with a 2 GHz processor with a full HD 3.2 inch display :p
 
Not really something to worry about at all. By the time you have used the life out of the screen you will probably have broken the phone some other way or at least be itching for a new phone.
 
AdamHC said:
Not really something to worry about at all. By the time you have used the life out of the screen you will probably have broken the phone some other way or at least be itching for a new phone.
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Most of us itch for a NEW phone daily ... Never Satisfied !! :rolleyes: :cool:
 
justjimjpc said:
Most of us itch for a NEW phone daily ... Never Satisfied !! :rolleyes: :cool:
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You're telling me. I bought my HTC Diamond in February and I've wanted a new phone for a few months now. That's partly cause it is WinMo and I hate it, hopefully next time since I will get an android phone I will be able to look after it longer.
 
Unfortunately wear and tear can show sooner than the manufacturer provided number of hours.
I've had my phone (Nexus One with the AMOLED screen) plugged in all day at work for some months and when plugged in, the screen didn't go to sleep, resulting in a burn-in of my homepage. It's usually not noticeable, but on all-white screens there's clear shadows from the burn-in.

I know this is not completely on topic, but it's a warning (and a lesson learned for me) to others, on not to take these numbers too literally.
 
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