There are many different types of mobile phone screens. Recently, many of you may have seen LTPO screens. Let’s take a look at what they are and whether they are better than AMOLED.

LTPO is a display technology that combines power efficiency with adaptive refresh rates, making it ideal for high-end smartphones. LTPO has replaced AMOLED panels, which have been the standard for premium smartphones for years. But what exactly is LTPO, and is it better than AMOLED? Let’s find out.

What is LTPO?

LTPO stands for low-temperature polycrystalline oxide. However, the full name doesn’t reveal much about the technology. LTPO is a backplane technology for OLED displays that allows the display to dynamically change its refresh rate depending on the conditions. The conditions in this case refer to what the user is doing at the time. For example, if you’re playing a high-end AAA game like Call of Duty Mobile, your screen needs to keep up with the fast-paced action. In that case, an LTPO display will change the refresh rate to suit your needs. You don’t need a higher refresh rate when you stop playing and start doing something mundane, like scrolling through social media, so the display will reduce its refresh rate.

LTPO technology has become the norm for flagship phones like the OnePlus 12 and Samsung Galaxy S24 Ultra are among the first smartphones to feature the technology.

The 6.82-inch 120Hz LTPO AMOLED panel dynamically refreshes between 1Hz and 120Hz, using the full 120Hz frequency when performing motion activities and switching to 10 or 30Hz while watching videos. And if you’re viewing photos or reading text, the display will reduce the refresh rate even further to 1Hz.

How does LTPO demonstrate dynamic refresh rate adjustment?

Conventional AMOLED displays use low-temperature polycrystalline silicon (LTPS) in thin film transistors (TFTs) that make up the display’s backplane. LTPO AMOLED panels use a combination of LTPS TFTs to handle the switching circuitry and other materials to drive the display, allowing the LTPO panel to dynamically change refresh rates.

Apple uses LTPS TFTs in combination with indium gallium zinc oxide (IGZO) TFTs. Samsung also has a proprietary technology for LTPO AMOLED panels that uses a combination of LTPS TFTs, hybrid oxide, and polycrystalline silicon (HOP).

Advantages of LTPO display technology

After high refresh rate smartphone displays became a reality, smartphone companies ran into one problem: reduced battery life. While smartphones often have poor battery life, increasing the refresh rate to 90Hz, 120Hz, or even 144Hz means faster screen time.

Companies have developed LTPO technology to solve this problem by varying the refresh rate. As you would expect, higher refresh rates use more battery, and lower numbers result in less battery. By dynamically changing the refresh rate, OLED displays reduce power consumption.

• Power efficiency: LTPO technology enables dynamic refresh rate adjustment, allowing the display to operate at a lower refresh rate when a high refresh rate is not required, resulting in improved power efficiency and battery life.
• Variable refresh rate: LTPO allows for a variable refresh rate, meaning the display can switch between different refresh rates based on the content being displayed. For example, it can operate at a higher refresh rate for smoother scrolling or gaming, and lower the refresh rate for static content, saving power.
• Improved battery life: By dynamically adjusting the refresh rate, LTPO AMOLED displays can optimize power consumption based on user activity, resulting in longer battery life.

Is LTPO better than AMOLED?

In short, LTPO AMOLED panels are better than AMOLED. When shopping for flagship phones, you will notice that some have AMOLED screens while others have LTPO AMOLED screens. They are not the same technology as we explained earlier.

Although AMOLED panels are more power efficient than LCD panels, the high refresh rate will have a significant impact on AMOLED performance. While LTPO improves on this and allows AMOLED panels to use high refresh rates while still maintaining power efficiency, this is a great thing (but the downside is that it is still quite expensive).

Source : medium, makeuseof