120Hz LCD vs 60Hz Amoled: Which one is better?

Recently budget smartphones are either coming with a higher refresh rate 120Hz LCD Display(eg. Poco X2) or a 60Hz Amoled Display(eg. Realme X2) and it gets confusing as to which one is better? Well there’s no one right answer for this. 120Hz LCD is better for some people and 60Hz Amoled is better for others. It completely depends upon the use case. Let’s try to find out which choice is better for you, a 120Hz LCD Display or a 60Hz Amoled Display.

Table of Contents

What is refresh rate?

First up let’s start talking about refresh rate. To explain refresh rate in leman’s terms, “it is the number of times the image on your display refreshes every single second”. For example, if the refresh rate is 60Hz then the image on your screen will refresh 60 times each second. This means that “higher the refresh rate, smoother is the display”.

Things like scrolling and swiping are buttery smooth because the display is refreshing more times. It’s the same concept as frame rate in videos. 24fps is the normal cinematic frame rate, 30fps is smoother than 24fps and then 60fps is way more smoother than 24 and 30fps.

Why does a higher refresh rate matter?

Having a higher refresh display matters because the user experience gets better. Swiping and scrolling is smoother than a lower refresh display. It also helps in gaming. If the game supports higher refresh rates, then having a 90Hz or a 120Hz Display makes sense because then the playing the game is a great experience. The gameplay is smoother and that particularly helps in games involving fast movement.

But with that being said, a higher refresh rate display consumes more power than a normal 60hz display. So battery life definitely gets affected due to a higher refresh rate. But I guess that’s a small price to pay for the smooth experience. 120Hz or 90Hz screens must be used in real-life to understand the smoothness of it.

LCD vs AMOLED

Now it’s time to talk about a major point i.e. LCD Display vs AMOLED Display. AMOLED displays are arguably better than LCD displays because AMOLED displays have a better contrast ratio, better colours and better brightness too. All this is possible because AMOLED screens light up individual pixels and that helps in getting deeper blacks. It doesn’t light up the black areas which results in a better contrast ratio.

If you consume a lot of content on your smartphones, then going with an AMOELD display makes sense because it gives a better experience. AMOLED display also saves battery if you use a black wallpaper. And, the colours pop out on an AMOLED screen. Its just a better experience overall.

120Hz LCD vs 60Hz AMOLED

Okay so now that we have a clear idea about refresh rate and display technologies, let’s talk about which type of display is better for which use case.

A 120Hz LCD display is a better choice for people who like a smooth experience and do not consume a lot of content on their smartphones. 120Hz is also good for gamers. I know that there are not a lot of games that support higher refresh rate as of now. But I’m pretty sure that in the future this number will increase. Hence, gamers should opt for a higher refresh rate display.

On the other hand, if you consume a lot of content on your smartphones then I would recommend you to go with a 60Hz AMOLED display. An AMOLED screen will give you a way better experience while watching movies, youtube videos, Netflix and chill, etc.

The ideal situation would be a higher refresh rate AMOLED display (eg. 90Hz AMOLED). But I guess it’ll take 1 or 2 more years till that happens in the budget segment i.e. under ₹20,000. (USD 180)

Anyway, I hope that his article helped you take an informed decision between a 120Hz LCD Display vs a 60Hz AMOLED Display.

Harsh Punjabi

I have always been passionate about technology. Trying out new gadgets like smartphones, laptops, headphones, etc. has always been very fascinating and one fine day, I decided to take this passion and turn it into something substantial. This is how technolobe was born.