What is local dimming on TV? Local dimming ways: Direct lighting, edge lighting, full array

Most of today’s smart TVs, on the picture part, have a technology that has a local dimming effect. Depending on the company, there will be a separate name for this technology as well as unique characteristics to distinguish it. So what is local dimming on TV, please read the article below!

What is local dimming on TV?

Local dimming on TVs is a feature that dims the backlight behind parts of the screen that are showing black . This allows deeper blacks to appear on those parts of the screen. This is a necessary technology when watching videos with dark scenes such as movies, exploring, … adding to the immersive entertainment experience.

Local dimming is intended to increase the contrast of the image by making the blacks look deeper . This feature will be most obvious in dark environments.

Local dimming ways

2.1 Direct, full-array lighting

Direct lighting means analyzing the video , figuring out where to dim and then dimming the backlights directly behind that part of the screen. This lighting is based on the backlight tree placed behind the screen.

– Full array lighting as well as direct, is to find out where to dim and dim the backlights in that area. But here, the point that is better than direct lighting is the use of backlight in small clusters instead of the backlight tree.

With so many small areas, it’s easier to illuminate only the supposedly brighter parts of the image, and it’s also more accurate to blur the areas that need to be dark.

Whether using a backlight tree or backlighting in small clusters below the screen, its main effect is to only dim the dark parts of the image and only brighten the parts that need to be brighter. If you need to compare, the use of backlight in small clusters brings a clearer, more accurate and better effect.

2.2 Edge lighting (LED edge)

Some other TVs are equipped with LED lights along the sides of the screen (2 opposite sides). The task of these lights is to illuminate the entire screen .

Local dimming on these edge LED TVs will typically only see the horizontal or vertical strip of the screen become dimmer, relative to the position of the LEDs on the edges. As such it does not correspond to the areas that need to be darker at all, and does not yield the expected results for this local dimming feature.

Direct/full array and edge lighting comparison table

Direct lighting, full array	Edge lighting (LED edge)
Use the backlight/backlight tree in clusters below the screen.	Use the backlight along the 2 sides of the TV.
Figure out where to dim and then dim the backlights directly behind that part of the screen.	The horizontal or vertical strip of the screen becomes dimmer, corresponding to the position of the LEDs on the edges.

Comparing the effect of dimming, it can be seen that direct, full-array lighting will stand out and be better than edge lighting. Edge-lit local dimming tends to be much less accurate.

Some brands have been applying local dimming in TV production to bring the best viewing experiences to users: Micro Dimming, Local Dimming, Direct Full Array,…

*Images are for illustrative purposes of Micro Dimming technology.

Some advantages and disadvantages of local dimming

Advantage

In the past, the dark picture on TV was almost slanted to dark gray. Blacks are not deep, leading to low contrast, which also reduces image quality. This is a defect that firms have constantly tried to find a solution for and have succeeded.

Local dimming to target dark parts of the screen and dim the backlight in those areas. The dark parts will become darker , the light areas will remain bright as usual, so the difference between dark and light is more obvious . The image quality is enhanced better as the contrast is improved.

Defect

No technology is 100% perfect, so local dimming has a few suboptimal points:

– Dark areas may lose some small details.

– Save a trail of light behind the subject if the subject moves quickly.

– Blur unwanted parts of the screen.

– The brightness of the screen fluctuates.

Hope the above information is useful and explained to help you better understand what local dimming on TVs is like and can be a point of reference when you are choosing a new TV. If you have any questions or suggestions, please comment below to receive the fastest support.

Reference source: Rtings