What's Actually New
RGB LED TVs replace the blue LED plus quantum dot combo with separate red, green, and blue LEDs behind an LCD panel. Hisense shipped the first consumer model in 2025 (116 inches, $25,000). Sony's following with a 2026 release. Samsung, LG, and TCL are all entering the space.
The claimed advantage: 100% BT.2020 color gamut versus 85% from quantum dots. That's the widest color standard available. Hisense's second-gen model improved color fringing issues from version one.
The Trade-offs
RGB LED sits between standard mini-LED and OLED. You get better color purity and higher brightness than quantum dot panels. LG claims over 1,000 dimming zones on its 100-inch model. TCL's RM9L has 16,848 zones.
But it's still LCD. Each pixel can't turn off individually like OLED. That means blooming around bright objects on dark backgrounds, despite the zone count. You're trading absolute blacks for higher peak brightness and no burn-in risk.
Why This Matters
LCD manufacturers need a response to OLED's picture quality gains. RGB LED is that response, particularly for large screens (75+ inches) where OLED remains expensive.
The gaming angle is real: Hisense and TCL are shipping 4K at 144Hz, 1080p at 288Hz. Response times matter when you're targeting competitive players who want HDR brightness without OLED's price or burn-in concerns.
The Pattern
This is LCD's third major backlight evolution in five years: edge-lit to full-array to mini-LED to RGB mini-LED. Each iteration adds complexity and zones to compete with OLED's inherent advantages. The question isn't whether RGB LED is better than last year's tech (it is). It's whether adding more LEDs behind an LCD panel can match letting each pixel control its own light.
We'll see. The 2026 models ship in Q2.