Q. What is the difference between OLED, QLED and ULED TVs?

A. OLED stands for "organic light-emitting diode." All the pixels in an OLED display create their own light and color. This technology has the best overall image quality among flat-panel televisions. This comes at a higher cost and a risk of burn-in. OLED TVs in sizes above 70 inches tend to be very expensive. OLED televisions are primarily marketed by LG, Samsung and Sony.

QLED and ULED are variations of LED technology. The Q stands for "quantum," and the U means "ultra." In both cases, the image is created by a liquid crystal display (LCD) panel that is illuminated by an LED light source. Conventional LCD TVs are illuminated by a fluorescent light source.

The QLED's quantum dots are tiny color dots in the pixels that improve color, brightness, contrast and overall picture quality. You can get a really big QLED set for not a lot of money, and times have never been better to buy a big television. Samsung and TCL are the primary marketers of QLED TVs.

ULED is a term used by the Hisense brand for its top televisions. These TVs combine quantum dot panels, LED illumination and Hisense's best image processing. I have reviewed that technology, and it is comparable to what other manufacturers are offering, so I consider ULED to be just a marketing name.

Now that we've gotten through all the technical gobbledygook, what does it mean? If you want the absolute best image quality, money is no object and you are not concerned about burn-in, look for a top-of-the-line OLED model if it comes in the size you want.

That said, QLED is getting remarkably close to OLED without the burn-in risk, and it can cost much less. I think QLED offers the best combination of performance and features overall, and I recently put my money where my mouth is. When the time came to replace my home theater's 70-inch Sony Qualia 006, I decided on an 85-inch Samsung QN90B to serve as my new review reference, purchased directly from samsung.com for $2,699 with free delivery. This was $2,300 off the regular price of $4,999 and an incredible bargain. Like I said, it is a great time to buy a big TV.

New parents, take note

When I was at the Consumer Electronics Show earlier this year, I saw a product demo of an interesting suite of products that are sure to be appreciated by new parents. Included are the Nursery Pal Dual Vision, which has a dual vision camera that shows a close-up view as well as view of the room, both presented on a dedicated 5-inch display.

Also of interest are the Smart Soothers that help babies sleep, movement monitors and a nonwearable sleep monitoring system. It's an impressive array of technology that I imagine will help parents sleep better, too. (hubbleconnected.com)

Send questions to Don Lindich at donlindich@gmail.com. Get recommendations and read past columns at soundadvicenews.com.