TCL said it was working with Roku on 8K TV sets that would fall under its 8-Series line which, confusingly, also includes some 4K HDR sets in the US. They were supposed to come out in 2019, but obviously that didn’t happen. At CES 2020, TCL reiterated that these models are still on the way. “TCL intends to launch TVs in North America this year that will exceed the high standards established as part of the 8K Association Certified program and grow the global adoption of this exciting big-screen technology, even partnering with Roku to roll out the first 8K TCL Roku TV later this year,” the company said in a press release.
In the future, TCL TVs will ship with a new form of Mini-LED technology not to be confused with Micro-LED called Vidrian. TCL says it’s the first TV backlight with “the driving semi-conductor circuitry and tens of thousands of micro-meter class mini-LEDs directly infused in a crystal-clear glass substrate.” In practice, that should mean better contrast and luminance. It’s not clear what TV models will use Viridian, though, or when our eyeballs will be able to appreciate it in our living rooms.
