What is the Difference Between LCD and OLED Screens?

LCD and OLED Replacement Phone Screens

If you need to repair your phone screen you may have been looking into different types of screen replacements. You’ve probably heard of the acronyms LCD and OLED in TVs before, but what are the differences between LCD and OLED screens and what will be best for your phone?

What is an LCD screen?

LCD or Liquid Crystal Display has been the standard for computer, tablet, and phone screens for the past decade. These screens offer great brightness, high definition, and are becoming relatively inexpensive. We tend to see LCD screens on the less expensive cell phone models, today. LCD screens can have great HD quality and have good performance in direct sunlight but tend to be more inefficient when it comes to power consumption compared to an OLED screen.

What is an OLED screen?

Over the past few years, many companies have been switching to newer screen technology: OLED displays. OLED, which stands for organic light-emitting diode, is being used on all of the latest flagship devices. They tout amazing contrast of color, they’re lighter and flexible and tend to be more efficient than LCDs. OLED technology is being used for curved edge phones like the Galaxy S10+ and the Galaxy S20, S20+, and S20 Ultra 5G. OLEDs have also been used in folding smartphone displays like the Samsung Galaxy Fold, the new Motorola razr smart flip phone, and the Samsung Galaxy Z Flip.

Which phones have OLED screens?

OLED displays are being used by Apple in their iPhone 11 Pro Max, 11 Pro, XS Max, XS, and X. iPhone X flagship series and newer will come with OLED. Both flagship Samsung Galaxy S and Note Series have OLED displays as the standard on all recent devices including the Samsung Galaxy S10 and Note 10 series, S9+, S9, Note 9, S8, S8+, Note 8, and so on. These phones also all have OLED displays: LG V40, LG V30, Huawei P30 Pro, Huawei Mate 20 Pro, OnePlus 6T, and the Motorola Moto Z2 Force Edition.

Which phones have LCD screens?

The iPhone 11 and the XR still use LCD displays as well as all other iPhones that came before the X series including the iPhone 8, iPhone 8 Plus, iPhone 7, iPhone 7 Plus, iPhone 6s, and so on. Basically, any iPhone with a Home Button will have a LCD screen on it. The LG G7 ThinQ, LG G6, Moto E5, and Moto E6 all have LCD displays as well.

Which screen should I get for my phone OLED or LCD?

When getting your device repaired, it is a good idea to use the display type that was originally installed on your phone. For example, if you have the iPhone X, which comes with an OLED display, ideally, you will want to get an OLED replacement. This will keep your phone running as efficiently as possible. If you need a more economical solution it is sometimes possible to get an LCD replacement, but keep in mind that they can drain your battery faster and may not have the same color contrast and may not be optimized for your phone.

How can I tell if I have an LCD or OLED screen?

One of the easiest ways to determine which display type you have is to go to a true black screen – you can search for this on Google Images. If your display type is LCD your pixels will still be displaying a dark gray light. If you have an OLED display the screen will be totally black. It is easier to tell when this experiment is performed in a dark room. You can also search GSMArena for your phone and then view its display type.

Can I Trade-In a Repaired iPhone?

In most cases, yes, you can trade-in a repaired iPhone with a non OEM display on it. However, depending on the company you choose to trade your iPhone in with the trade-in price may decrease due to a non OEM display. For example, at SmartphonesPLUS you can trade in a phone that has a replacement screen on it or with other replacement parts as well.

If you have any further questions or are still not sure about cell phone screen repair, feel free to email us at [email protected].

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