Samsung put off an OLED TV shipment to Value...

Samsung put off an OLED TV shipment to Value Electronics slated for this week until late next week, Robert Zohn, president of the Scarsdale, N.Y., AV retail store, told Consumer Electronics Daily. Zohn said earlier this week that Samsung’s 55-inch curved OLED model KN55S9, priced at $14,999, was on its way to his store, but he revised the schedule Wednesday, calling the shipping change part of a “planned unified nationwide launch” next week to a “limited number of premium retailers.” Samsung didn’t respond to questions by our deadline. On how Value Electronics plans to position OLED versus this year’s other advanced TV technology, Ultra HD, Zohn told us he doesn’t see the two as direct competitors. “At the moment, OLED is Full HD,” he said, compared with 4K Ultra HD, which appeals to those who want higher resolution, he said. Because, for now, all Ultra HD displays are LED-lit LCD TVs -- and come in screen sizes from 39-85 inches -- versus first-generation 55-inch OLED TVs with curved screens, “the applications are different,” Zohn said. Zohn prefers OLED over Ultra HD due to its high brightness capability and “very low” minimum luminance level that produces “ultra deep blacks,” he said. Contrast ratio, especially black level, is the key attribute to render the best picture quality, and OLED is the display technology that delivers the best contrast ratio, he said.