Rear-projection televisions using DLP technology and LED light engines were demonstrated at CES 2006 last week.

Televisions featuring LED light sources were much in evidence at last weeks Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas. In the last year or so, several companies have introduced LCD televisions featuring LED backlights, and at this years event Samsung introduced an 82-inch monster, reports LEDs Magazine.

However, attention was focused on a different type of TV - rear projection television (RPTV) using digital light processor (DLP) technology. Both Samsung and Akai unveiled rear-projection DLP sets in which the traditional bulb and color wheel are replaced with an LED light engine.

Generally, DLP television offers large screen sizes and excellent image quality, but the sets are deeper than flat-screen LCD and plasma displays, and there are issues with bulb replacement and the rainbow effect. Many of these disadvantages are addressed by replacing the bulb with LEDs.

Samsung Electronics HL-S5679W 55-inch DLP rear-projection TV, capable of reproducing high-definition TV (HDTV) images, incorporates a 1080p (1920 x 1080) DLP chip supplied by Texas Instruments.

The set uses 18 LEDs, 6 each of red, green and blue, and eliminates the projection bulb and color wheel found in other DLP televisions