Enhancing Laptop Battery Life with Samsung and Intel's New OLED Technology

Samsung Display has collaborated with Intel to introduce SmartPower HDR, a feature designed to optimize power consumption when viewing HDR content on OLED laptop screens. This innovation aims to conserve battery life, a significant challenge when using HDR.

Intel showcased this innovative technology last year, and now Samsung Display is revealing insights into its operation and the potential energy savings it offers. Nevertheless, the companies have not yet specified which laptop models will feature SmartPower HDR, leaving the timeline for its market availability uncertain.

How SmartPower HDR Works

The SmartPower HDR system functions by having the laptop's chipset actively track the peak brightness levels of displayed frames in real-time. This data is then processed by the OLED panel's timing controller, which assesses the active pixel ratio to ascertain the most efficient driving voltage for the display.

Adaptive Voltage Control

For typical activities such as browsing the web or editing documents, SmartPower HDR allows the laptop to operate at reduced voltage levels. On the other hand, playing video games or watching HD videos necessitates heightened brightness and power, which this system efficiently manages, unlike conventional HDR which relies on maximum brightness, leading to unnecessary power drain.

Energy Efficiency Gains

SmartPower HDR promises up to 22% reduction in energy use during general laptop operation, and up to 17% when engaged in HDR viewing, compared to current OLED methods. For non-HDR tasks, this power consumption remains similar to devices operating in SDR mode.