Cheap big-screen LCD TVs could be in trouble for Black Friday — panel prices are going up

Key LCD panel makers are upping prices this month, which is a crunch manufacturing period ahead of Black Friday and end-of-year sales There are only three TV LCD panel manufacturers, and all have decided to protect profits with price rises, reportedly Samsung's is also said to be cutting QLED TV production by up to 80% If you're planning to pick up a super-cheap big-screen LCD TV for Black Friday this year, you may need to temper your expectations.

Key LCD panel makers have reportedly told manufacturers including Samsung, Sony and LG that they're putting their panel prices up just in time for production ready for the busiest sales period of the year.

Samsung Display doesn't make LCD panels any more, and LG Display has also stopped making them.

That means the big TV brands are reliant on a handful of Chinese panel producers who now dominate the market: BOE, TCL CSOT, and HKC.

Those producers aren't running at full capacity, but rather than increase supply and potentially lower prices, they're restricting production to "contain oversupply and defend prices", according to The Elec .

TCL CSO and HKC will raise the price of some products this month, September 2026, with BOE upping prices in the fourth financial quarter.

As The Elec notes, "concerns that China’s dominance of the LCD supply chain would translate into greater control over panel prices are becoming a reality." The price hikes leave the big-name TV manufacturers in a bad place, because they will have locked in their LCD panel orders for Black Friday and the holidays already, and it'll be difficult for them to change their production plans.

That means price hikes on the panels used in affordable sets, which already have razor-thin profit margins, could have an effect on how exciting the TV deals on LCD models this year — and with giant-screen LCD TVs being the super-popular pick right now, it could make a real difference.

Samsung has dropped QLED from its new 2026 mini-LED line-up — this image compares the QLED-less budget M80H on the left with the Neo QLED QN80H on the right.

The Batman provides a great test for how they handle contrast. (Image credit: Warner Bros / Future ) Does the Q in Samsung QLED stand for "quitting"? In another blow for price-conscious LCD buyers, Samsung is reportedly scaling down production of its QLED TVs dramatically, by up to 80% this year, while considering dropping QLED altogether by 2028.

QLED takes LCD panels and applies a layer of quantum dots to deliver better colors, and launched as a more affordable and very bright rival to OLED.

However, as the best OLED TVs continue to get better and have a big grip on the premium end of the market, QLED has become a tech you see a lot on budget models.