# item.guide
Side-by-Side Comparison Panel Types

Mini-LED vs. QLED

Comparing 2 standards across 12 specifications. 12 key differences identified.

Comparing:
Mini-LED
QLED

Mini-LED is a backlight technology, not a panel type -- it uses thousands of LEDs roughly 0.1-0.2mm in size (versus 0.5-1mm for traditional LED backlights) arranged into hundreds or thousands of local-dimming zones behind an LCD panel of any type, improving contrast and reducing blooming. TCL commercialized it in TVs starting in 2019.

View full Mini-LED spec sheet →

QLED, despite its OLED-like name, is not a self-emissive technology -- it's a conventional LED-backlit LCD panel with a quantum-dot film added between the backlight and the LCD layer to produce more precise color. Samsung introduced it in 2017; it still requires a backlight and has the same blooming limitations as other backlit LCDs.

View full QLED spec sheet →

Specification Comparison Table

12 Parameters
Parameter / Spec
Contrast Ratio
10,000–100,000 : 1 (Dynamic with local dimming)
Viewing Angle
178° (Depends on base IPS or VA panel)
Response Time (GtG)
1–4 ms
Color Gamut Coverage
99% sRGB / 95–98% DCI-P3
Peak Brightness
1,000–2,000+ nits (High full-screen brightness)
Burn-in Risk
None (Immune)
Backlight / Emissive Type
Thousands of Miniaturized Direct Local Dimming LEDs
Black Level / Minimum Luminance
Near Zero (0.001–0.01 nits in dim zones)
Underlying Technology
LED-backlit LCD (typically VA) + quantum-dot color-conversion film
Self-Emissive
No -- requires a backlight, same as any other LCD
Introduced
CES 2017 (Samsung)
Not To Be Confused With
OLED (self-emissive, no backlight)