Raising the bar for cinema innovation, Samsung Electronics Co unveiled the latest model of Onyx (ICD) in March. The next generation of cinematic experiences will be defined by immersive visuals, improved comfort, and a reliable viewing experience.

In this article, Samsung Newsroom takes a closer look at the company’s vision for the future of cinema in terms of Visuals, Space and Consistency.

Samsung Onyx was the center of attention at the company’s booth at CinemaCon 2025, the industry’s largest exhibition

Visuals – An Out-of-This-World Screen Experience

Immersion is at the heart of the cinematic experience — a setting designed to transport audiences into the world of the film. Only in an environment free from the everyday distractions such as constant calls, notifications and household chores can viewers fully engage with the story unfolding on the screen.

A true cinematic experience faithfully delivers the filmmaker’s vision, presenting every detail, colour and shadow exactly as intended. Onyx brings that vision to reality.

Pixar’s Inside Out 2 shown on Samsung Onyx, demonstrating the display’s peak brightness and vibrant colour accuracy

Onyx, the world’s first cinema LED display certified[1] by Digital Cinema Initiatives (DCI), delivers superior picture quality in 4K HDR resolution with vivid colours, deep blacks and infinite contrast. The clarity, precision and rich detail in each frame help give life to the narrative. Gone are the days of poor edge resolution and inconsistent brightness.

Samsung Onyx enhances Pixar’s Lightyear (top) and Soul (bottom) with outstanding contrast, making dark scenes more vivid and immersive

The Onyx screen can lend its brightness and clarity to applications other than movie screenings – live sports, concerts, gaming events and corporate presentations, for example. The ability to host alternative content empowers theatres to diversify their offerings and create new revenue streams without compromising the premium viewing experience.

A live concert seen on Onyx, demonstrating the display’s colour accuracy and sharp details

Space – More Room for Comfort and Flexibility

Comfort and spatial design are also key factors that set premium cinemas apart. Much like the distinction between economy and business class on an airplane, the seating experience can make or break a theatre’s appeal. As theatres evolve into premium auditoriums, spacious, comfortable seating becomes essential.

Onyx helps enable this transformation. Unlike traditional projectors which require separate projection rooms and large setups, Onyx’s cinema LED technology maximises the available space in a theatre. This allows cinemas to optimise their auditorium spaces and provides more flexibility to install specialised seating like larger recliners or dining tables.

Furthermore, new Onyx (ICD) offers flexible scaling options, allowing screens to be customised to fit the dimension of each auditorium, ensuring the best use of space without sacrificing picture quality and comfort.

Pixar’s Elio screened on Samsung Onyx featuring luxury seating for a premium cinema experience

With Onyx, every seat in the theatre offers a reliable high-quality visual experience – with minimal edge distortion or resolution loss – ensuring that the entire audience is fully immersed in the story. The combination of optimised space, enhanced comfort, and stunning visuals elevates the overall cinema experience.

Samsung Onyx empowers theatres to deliver a premium cinema experience and luxury dining for customers

Consistency – Reliable Viewing Quality with Smarter Management Tools

We go to the theatre to be transported—to lose ourselves in the world of a story. But experiences in traditional projection-based theatres can deteriorate with picture quality that varies depending on the age and condition of the equipment.

Samsung’s Cinema LED screen, on the other hand, features an ‘Auto Calibration Solution’ that automatically adjusts colour consistency across each module, ensuring optimal picture quality—not just at installation, but every step of the way through ongoing maintenance.

Samsung Onyx, an out-of-this-world cinema LED display

Since debuting the world’s first Cinema LED screen in 2017, Onyx has built strong partnerships with major global film studios, earning trust and recognition across the industry. As the leader in Cinema LED technology, Samsung is committed to pushing boundaries—so the magic of the movies is always seen exactly as it was meant to be.

With Samsung Onyx, the future of premium cinema is brighter, clearer, and more immersive than ever before.

[1] Digital Cinema Initiatives (DCI) is a consortium of major film studios established to define specifications for an open architecture in digital cinema systems.

Image simulated for illustrative purposes.

Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd. today announced the latest Onyx (ICD model) cinema LED screen at CinemaCon 2025, marking a new era for cinema display technology. Building on its legacy as a cinema LED pioneer, which began in 2017, Samsung is setting new standards in picture quality, reliability and screen scalability to meet the evolving needs of theaters worldwide.

“The cinema industry is shifting its focus towards delivering a more immersive and visually captivating experience,” said Hoon Chung, Executive Vice President of Visual Display Business at Samsung Electronics. “With Onyx, Samsung delivers not only the highest-quality visuals but also the flexibility that allows theaters to redefine the movie-going experience and cater to evolving audience expectations.”

Brighter, Bolder and More Immersive: The Future of Cinema is Here

As Samsung’s first DCI-certified[1] cinema LED display, Samsung Onyx delivers an unparalleled cinematic experience with true black levels, infinite contrast ratio and exceptional color accuracy. The screen is capable of supporting frame rates up to 4K 120Hz,[2] delivering ultra-smooth motion and razor-sharp details.

Every auditorium has unique dimensions, and screen size requirements vary from theater to theater. To accommodate this, Onyx offers four standard sizes[3] and additional flexible scaling options, allowing theaters to maximise their available space and present films in the largest possible format without compromising image quality:

• 5 meters (16ft) – Ideal for boutique and smaller-format theaters (Pixel pitch: 1.25mm)
• 10 meters (33ft) – The industry standard for premium cinemas (Pixel pitch: 2.5mm)
• 14 meters (46ft) – A versatile format that delivers an impressive, large-scale cinematic experience (Pixel pitch: 3.3mm)
• 20 meters (66ft) – A large-format solution for premium auditoriums (Pixel pitch: 5.0mm)

Samsung Onyx cinema LED screens natively support both scope (2.39:1) and flat (1.85:1) aspect ratios, ensuring films are displayed in their intended formats without the need for additional adjustments. When scaling beyond standard sizes, Onyx maintains both aspect ratios while maximising the screen size, allowing content to expand proportionally without distortion.

Unlike traditional projectors, which can appear dim in larger theaters and struggle with washed-out colours in bright scenes, Onyx’s enhanced brightness ensures richer details in shadows, more intense highlights and superior colour accuracy across the entire spectrum. Powered by Samsung’s HDR technology, Onyx reaches peak brightness levels of 300 nits (87.6fL) — six times brighter than conventional cinema standards — allowing even the brightest details to remain clear and visible.[4] As a result, high-brightness scenes retain their full impact, rather than appearing washed out or overexposed.

With its industry-leading brightness and precision, Onyx enables clear and vivid playback even in brightly lit environments, making it ideal for alternative content such as live sports, concerts, gaming events, and corporate presentations. This allows theaters to deliver a premium viewing experience beyond traditional movie screenings.

Built for Reliability and Seamless Integration

To maintain optimal picture quality, Samsung provides an auto calibration solution that enables theatres to easily calibrate their screens during installation and routine maintenance.

Designed for seamless integration, Onyx is compatible with both Dolby and GDC IMB media servers, making it easier for theaters to transition from traditional projection systems. Because of this, theater networks can enjoy seamless content playback and efficient management.

Onyx is fully compatible with leading cinema audio solutions, including Dolby Atmos, Meyer Sound, QSC and custom-designed sound systems, providing theaters with the flexibility to customise their sound experience to meet their specific needs. For theatres using HARMAN’s JBL surround sound technology, Onyx also offers seamless integration to ensure optimised audio performance.

A Proven Legacy with Global Recognition

Samsung Onyx is redefining how movies are experienced through its collaboration with the film industry as well. One such example was Samsung partnering with Pixar Animation Studios to master films like “Elemental,” “Inside Out 2,” and this summer’s “Elio” in HDR for Onyx, which led to the films being shown with exceptional brightness, contrast and colour accuracy. Through close collaboration with filmmakers, Onyx continues to push the boundaries of display technology, ensuring that creative visions are brought to life with unmatched precision and clarity.

“At Pixar, we believe cinema can be a grand, shared experience — a place where stories feel larger than life and memories are made with friends. That’s why we’re driven to bring something truly new to the big screen with our pioneering HDR-1 theatrical releases,” said Dominic Glynn, Senior Scientist, Pixar Animation Studios.

“In rising to meet this ambition, the ONYX screen technology delivers astonishing brightness, clarity, and colour — an image so clear and uniform it elevates every moment of the story. Even the casual moviegoer will feel the difference. It’s about creating that unforgettable ‘Wow!’ — the kind of experience that reminds us why cinema is, and always should be, special.”

For more details, visit samsung.com/au

[1] Digital Cinema Initiatives (DCI) is a consortium of major studios formed to establish specifications for an open architecture for digital cinema systems.

[2] Based on the screen’s internal data bandwidth. Actual frame rates may vary depending on the connected IMB.

[3] All measurements in meters and feet refer to screen width, while all measurements in inches denote diagonal;
The 10-meter Onyx screen is now available for order, with other models arriving in a phased rollout.

[4] Peak brightness supported when using DCI-HDR supported IMB.