Nano IPS, the Technology that Enhances the Color of Monitors and TV

Nano IPS

In the gaming PC industry and almost also for the professional video and audio sector, we undoubtedly have a rather curious problem in terms of monitor panel technology. It’s funny how the three main technologies have stayed strong for decades, but now there are two very tough competitors that can end this whole status quo: OLED and Nano IPS . We have already talked at length about the first, but the second is much newer and totally different. What is it really based on?

As you might expect, Nano IPS is a technology based on the proprietary LG IPS standard and as such represents a number of improvements over it to compete with the technologies that other manufacturers are advertising. But to understand where the current battle for professional monitors, gaming and televisions is, it is necessary to explain in detail what exactly Nano IPS is.

Nano IPS, revolution or evolution?

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As expected, Nano IPS is also LG’s proprietary technology for panels, whether for monitors, televisions or any type of device on the market. Therefore, it is their response to Samsung‘s Quantum DOT technology and of course against OLED, although the latter is not proprietary and each manufacturer works in a different way to the point that LG is also a leader in OLED in the market. .

But logically this is not enough if in the range where you compete you already have enough competitors and the market is saturated. You need to compete in niches where there is also less competition from panels and technologies. Here we enter the terrain of the CP, where TN, VA and IPS have been ruling for decades, sometimes some, sometimes others, but they have always remained temporarily.

Although everyone wants to enter this war with gaming-oriented OLED, another simpler, more useful and cheaper technology was created to make a leap in quality compared to AHVA from AU Optronics, which is prevailing in gaming monitors due to its contrast, HDR and high Hz rate.

Here comes LG again with Nano IPS, which is a natural evolution of the current IPS panels towards a change and definition of the superior image, but above all to the fact of being able to reproduce a wider and above all more reliable color space.

To understand the benefits of this new technology, you first have to understand how a common IPS panel works. The LED matrix in these panels is combined with a unit that drives the colors through what is known as a W-LED or White-LED backlight . This is what allows the colors to look better or worse in terms of fidelity with the color spaces predefined by the industry and therefore these panels are often used for professional environments such as video and image editing together with 10-bit panels and rates 60 Hz or lower.

Smaller absorbed particle size gives LG an advantage

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The perfect monitor does not exist, or rather, the perfect panel does not exist. As we know, if you don’t lose in one feature, you lose in another and the closest thing to perfection such as OLED ends up being really expensive.

IPS began as the standard for professionals as a panel, but over the years we now find panels with this technology and large sizes, a hertz rate above 100 without problem and especially with increasing contrasts. With the arrival of HDR IPS it has had to evolve, since the predefined color space is DCI-P3, so to obtain this certification we have to have a panel that shows 90% of the specification.

But this is tricky for a common IPS panel, so LG worked on an improved version – Nano IPS. What does this technology achieve? Well, by means of a layer of nanoparticles it is possible that the W-LED layer absorbs certain wavelengths that are not needed, such as yellows and oranges, or a wide range of reds, so this precisely achieves more precise tones from pantone.

According to LG, this layer of nanoparticles includes a tiny KSF phosphor layer with materials such as Mn4, which is why the brand calls it KSF LED . By absorbing these wavelengths described, Nano IPS achieves a color space that is capable of representing 98% of DCI-P3 , achieving more vivid colors and at the same time bright and saturated, which gives it the HDR rating more easily. when the panel is to be tested.

This KSF LED layer is capable of absorbing light particles only 2 nm thick, being far ahead of the competition within traditional panels, including AHVA or Quantum DOT, since the latter two barely manage to “trap” particles of 3 nm, the average being between 4 nm and 7 nm.

Obviously the color precision will be lower, but this is something that the human eye may not be affected by if it is not really trained and you have two panels at the same time in situ to compare.

Nano IPS vs Nano Cell, why so much confusion?

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LG has registered another technology called Nano Cell and many are those who wonder why it does not reach PC monitors if it already exists on TV and achieves surprising results at a competitive price. The reality is simpler than it seems, and although many do not know it, Nano Cell is actually Nano IPS technology but brought to television panels due to its larger size.

There are no technical differences in this regard here, simply LG decided to call both technologies differently to improve marketing and compete with it with Samsung and Quantum DOT, thus approaching different markets with different needs.

To finish, logically Nano IPS is fully compatible with all the variable or adaptive synchronization technologies on the market, including FreeSync or G-SYNC , in any of their modes for both (which are many). This does not affect the panel, the Nano IPS technology will have limitations such as IPS, TN or VA for Hz, contrast, brightness or viewing angles, but that is innate in each of them, so aggregates such as ULMB and the like with VRR they do not influence the technology of the panel itself.