Samsung Gets Its Outdoor Terrace Prosumer Signage Displays UL-Certified … For Visibility

June 16, 2021 by Dave Haynes

Underwriters Laboratories (UL) certifications are a big aspect of consumer and business technology sales and marketing, with integrators, solutions providers and end-users tending to not buy product that doesn’t come with UL safety test certifications. 

UL certification is VERY common in digital signage, but I have not previously seen the testing and certification applied to something like visibility – which I suppose is a safety issue, but is more of a measure of visual quality and use-case applicability.

Samsung just announced that all models of its The Terrace TV line have become the first in the TV industry to be UL verified for outdoor visibility performance.

The Terrace TV is Samsung’s relatively new line of prosumer TVs, bundled with smartphone-based management software, aimed at outdoor settings like dining areas at restaurants.

In normal outdoor settings, consumers must find means to block sunlight to gain appropriate visibility, which has been a major issue across relevant product categories. To receive this verification, a product must undergo several rounds of rigorous testing, in which peak brightness of over 3,000 ~ 4,000 nits,² a higher contrast ratio of over 1,000:1, and color volume greater than 80 percent should be altogether achieved under over 10,000 LUX condition. The Terrace TV has displayed outstanding performance in these three key areas so viewers can enjoy clear, vivid images even in bright outdoors.

It also features Samsung’s premium QLED display, anti-reflection technology which reduces light reflection from its surface, as well as AI picture quality optimization technology for automatic brightness adjustment.

Samsung’s OH551, which is used for things like drive-thru order and pre-sell displays, also received visibility verification from UL.

Samsung also recognizes the importance of weather resistance against rain and dust for outdoor TV set models. The company obtained IP55 water and dust resistance standard certification from International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC), which together with the latest UL verification will play a pivotal role in fortifying Samsung’s efforts to provide an optimal viewing experience in various outdoor conditions.

This is interesting. I don’t really think about UL in terms of doing certifications for things like whether a display cuts through sunlight’s glare. But there is lotsa marketing hyperbole in this business, like most businesses, so a very credible entity like Ul confirming a product is indeed daylight-readable has an attraction.

I have seen some “outdoor-ready TVs” marketed that had brightness properties that would not, at least in theory, win any battle with glare on a sunny day. But they’re marketed as though they will.