If you've been following technology news lately, chances are you've heard of RGB Mini LED and Micro RGB technology. Just what is RGB Mini LED, though, and how does it work? Simply put, RGB Mini LED TVs work by replacing the white or blue LEDs in existing LED TVs with a single package with separate red, green, and blue LEDs. While almost all TV manufacturers are expected to release new TVs powered by this technology in 2026, none have hit the market yet. Therefore, we'll explore how the technology works and what we expect the benefits (and downsides) to be. Once we've had the opportunity to purchase and test a few of these models, we'll update this article with real-world measurements to help you make an informed purchasing decision.
How Does RGB Mini LED Work?
This new technology completely changes the way LED TVs generate light. Until now, Mini LED TVs worked by first generating either white or blue light (depending on the color technology used), and then passing that light through various color filters and/or quantum dot color converters to generate the red, green, and blue light needed for each subpixel. RGB Mini LED TVs work by simply replacing the white or blue LEDs used in the backlight with a combined unit with red, green, and blue LEDs inside each module.
These TVs can control the light output of each smaller LED individually, so if you're displaying a scene with mostly red, it can dim those green and blue LEDs separately from the red, a feature most brands refer to as Color Dimming. Of course, they can still dim the entire LED array for each zone, allowing them to function like traditional local dimming features, which most brands refer to as White Dimming on these TVs.
What Is Micro RGB LED?
Depending on which brand you're looking at, you might see some models advertised as Micro RGB instead. The good news is, it's the exact same thing. This is another clear case of marketing bloat, with some brands using this different name to imply that their RGB LEDs are smaller or possibly more numerous than the competitors. That's not necessarily the case, and in most cases, both marketing names refer to the exact same technology.
Performance
Now that we've covered what RGB Mini LED and Micro RGB LED TVs are and how this new technology works, what are the benefits of these TVs, and how do they perform overall? While we haven't been able to purchase and test any of these new TVs yet, we can draw a few clear conclusions just by examining how the technology works.
Contrast & Local Dimming
Let's get this out of the way: despite what some brands are claiming, an RGB Mini LED is still just a Mini LED, so it has the exact same limitations as existing local dimming features, and it may even make things worse in some cases. The exact zone count, the size of the LEDs, and more importantly, the algorithms that control them still have the greatest impact on contrast and local dimming performance. So we don't expect this first round of TVs to have any better halo control than 2025 models, unless they're also combined with an increase in zone count and better processing. You will still see haloing around bright highlights on these models.
Color Gamut
It wouldn't be a new display technology without lofty marketing claims surrounding it. LG Electronics isn't alone in this, either, as Samsung also claims 100% BT.2020 coverage with their new Micro RGB TVs. We won't be able to judge this until we're able to actually buy and test one, but these claims are most likely only valid when you're using the "Vivid" picture mode, as it's unlikely they can hit those peaks while still delivering an accurate image. Given the way these LEDs generate light, it's actually quite possible that these claims aren't far from the mark, but we'll have to wait and see the finished product.
Color Smear
Unfortunately, switching to RGB backlighting also has a significant downside: color smear. This is especially noticeable when you have a very saturated primary color right next to something else, like the white banner trailing the red plane in this image. The zones behind the plane are emitting a red light that bleeds into the surrounding areas, resulting in a red smear on the white banner.
This also causes colored haloing in dark scenes, so the white glow that you get in dark scenes on existing Mini LED technology could now have a red, green, or blue tint to it, depending on the color of the highlight. This is especially problematic if you prefer to watch TV with subtitles enabled and have adjusted the color of those subtitles to reduce their intensity. This would cause significant color haloing around those subtitles.
Viewing Angle
Despite some marketing claims, this new technology shouldn't have any impact on a TV's viewing angle. Only the LED backlight is changing; the LCD layer that controls the light output at the front of the display is still the same, whether that's VA, ADS, or something else, and that layer has the greatest impact on a TV's viewing angle.
Longevity
Our testing has shown that over time, LEDs fail. While these new TVs may change up the type of LEDs used, they're still LEDs. Therefore, we don't expect issues such as image retention or burn-in to arise with this new technology; however, those LEDs can still fail over time. Thankfully, under normal usage, most people can expect their TV to last for many years without any issues, so the longevity of the individual LEDs isn't really a concern.
Conclusion
There's no doubt about it, RGB Mini LED is making waves in the TV industry, with every major brand investing significant resources into developing it. It's still unclear how well they actually perform, though, and it seems that the technology might have a few bugs to work out before it truly surpasses existing Mini LED technology in every way. Overall, it appears that this might be the next evolution in local dimming, which could raise the bar slightly, but it's not quite the OLED-killer that some brands are making it out to be.