Samsung OLED will retail for $9000

Samsung has announced its ES9500 OLED TV will launch in South Korea in the second half of 2012 at a price equivalent to US$9000. The TV, formally known as the Samsung Super OLED, will retail for 10 million won ($8760 U.S) and is expected to compete with LG's own OLED panel the EM9600. The LG is also due in 2012 and won CNET's BEST of CES 2012 award. OLED (Organic Light Emitting Diode) is a display technology that could potentially outperform the picture quality of best LCD and plasma TVs of today. It's currently featured in mobile devices such as the Samsung Galaxy SII and the Sony PS Vita. The 55-inch Samsung TV will also include Smart Dual View technology which allows two users to watch different 2D programs simultaneously while wearing 3D glasses and a 20 percent improvement in color reproduction compared with current LED-lit panels, according to Engadget. The TV is also expected to include Samsung's premium features including Smart Interaction gesture control and Smart Evolution upgradability. Samsung's head of TV business told Associated Press it would take another two to three years for OLED to go mainstream. The release of the ES9500 outside of South Korea is yet to be confirmed, but in February Samsung told CNET the TV is expected to be released locally in the second half of this year. CNET attempted to contact Samsung representatives but they were unavailable for comment by press time.