Display Types Laptops 2025

You may have noticed in this website I’ve spent sometime discussing each laptop’s display characteristics.

I do this because in 2024 , there are HUGE differences as far as visual experience goes with different laptop’s displays.

It is now CRUCIAL to CAREFULLY consider a laptop’s type for the best GAMING experience or the best WORKFLOW environment.

As an example, take a look at the difference in colors below: TN vs IPS.

There’s going to be a HUGE diffence in the ways colors are rendered. The difference can be more DRAMATIC with MODERN displays we’ll go over next.

There are other differences too we’ll go over all of them starting with the most basic cheapest display found on laptops.

1. TN (Twisted Nematic) Panels

TN panels is shown on the left screen in the picture. This used to be the most common displays found on laptops before 2018. They’re the cheapest displays thus they have the lowest visual quality and are now mostly found on older models or very cheap laptops such as small notebooks, chromebooks and any laptop below 350 bucks. 

PROS

• Fast response times: This means the screen refreshes more efficiently. It MAY give you some advantage in FPS (first person shooting) games like Counter Strike 2 in theory.
• Affordable: They make laptops more affordable. I’d say about 50 dollars cheaper. For example, if you found a laptop with a different but “better” display and you find a model with the same hardware (CPU, GPU, RAM) that’s 50 dollar cheaper. The latter is more likely to have a TN display.
• Low Power: They consume somewhat LESS power than other display panels we’ll go over. This means LONGER batteries and LOWER energy bills.

Cons

• Poor Color Reproduction: Inferior to other display types in terms of color accuracy. This is plain to see in picture above. The colors are more washed out and dull.
• Narrow Viewing Angles: this means it becomes much less visible from different angles. If you tilt your laptop too much as opposed to directly facing at a 90 degrees, the screen will become less and less visible.

Recommended for: Gamers, Office Work, Students.

2. IPS (In-Plane Switching) Panels

IPS panels are the most common displays found on laptops. You can find them on budget as well as gaming and even the most expensive workstation laptops. 

PROS

• Better Color Accuracy & Contrast : As you can see in the picture. They’re far superior to TN panels as far as color representation goes. Colors are more vivid and more accurate. This is what leads to the massive difference in how the Avatar character is rendered in the image. Since colors are more vivid and natural there’s a better contraste between objects. 
• Wide Viewing Angles: This means you can tilt or move the display backward, forward, or to the sides without experiencing a significant degradation in color accuracy, brightness, or contrast.

CONS

• Higher Cost: IPS panels are more expensive than TN. This adds usually around 30-50 dollars to the total price.
• Higher Power Consumption: Since they use a different technology to produce backlightining, they will consume more power than TN display. This means less battery and higher energy bills. 

Recommended for:  photo editing, graphic design, video production, watching movies, gaming.  

3. VA (Vertical Alignment) Panels

VA panels offer a middle ground between TN and IPS panels, providing better contrast than TN and good color reproduction, but still not as good as IPS in terms of viewing angles as can be seen in the picture above.

4. OLED (Organic Light-Emitting Diode) Panels

So far all the display types we have gone over require a backlight. In other words, there is a big bulb of light shining over filters to generate colors on each pixel as shown below:

However, OLED technology does not need a backlight. Each PIXEL generates its OWN color.

What this means there’s WAY more COLOR accuracy. The difference is HUGE. Unlike other display panels who cannot TURN OFF the color in each pixel (since there is a huge backlight shining on all pixels as shown in the figure). OLED displays have full control over each pixel this means the color black will be TRULY black too. This results in the extreme difference in contrast shown below:

Recommended for: Best suited for creative professionals who need exceptional color accuracy and contrast, and media consumers who want the best visual experience.

Battery Life vs Display Type 

• TN: Lowest power consumption, making it ideal for budget laptops and users prioritizing battery life.
• IPS: Higher power consumption due to backlighting but offers superior color and viewing angles, ideal for content creation and general users.
• VA: Moderate power consumption, providing good balance for media-heavy users who need better contrast.
• OLED/AMOLED: Power-efficient in dark settings, but power-hungry on bright displays, best for premium laptops with high-end specs but can impact battery life.