What is a primary characteristic of OLED displays?

OLED displays, or Organic Light Emitting Diode displays, fundamentally operate by emitting light in response to an electric current. This is a defining feature of the technology. Unlike traditional LCDs that require a separate backlight to illuminate the pixels, each pixel in an OLED display is made from organic material that generates its light when an electric current passes through it. This allows OLEDs to achieve true blacks, as pixels can be turned off completely, and results in a generally higher contrast ratio compared to LCDs.

The requirement for backlighting, longer lifespans, or energy efficiency claims do not pertain to OLED technology itself. In fact, one of the advantages of OLEDs is that they can be more energy efficient, particularly when displaying darker images, since they can completely turn off individual pixels. Therefore, the characteristic of emitting light in response to an electric current is the core aspect that distinguishes OLED displays from other display technologies.