PurColor is an image-processing technology developed by Samsung to improve color reproduction on TV screens. Designed for Samsung TVs running the Tizen operating system, it enhances color accuracy, creates smoother transitions between shades, and helps deliver a more natural and realistic picture.
PurColor is mainly used in Samsung UHD and Crystal UHD televisions, which belong to the budget and mid-range segments. Many of these models use 8-bit panels with limited native color capabilities. By applying additional image processing, PurColor helps optimize available colors, improve gradients, and enhance the overall visual quality of the picture.
How does PurColor technology work on a TV?
A TV screen consists of millions of pixels that form the final image. When the TV receives a signal with a resolution lower than UHD (4K), the processor must generate additional information to correctly display the image on a 4K panel.
During this process, the TV’s processor analyzes the existing pixels and compares them to the surrounding areas of the image. Between two points on the UHD screen, there are pixels that may be filled with existing colors or intermediate shades; the processor calculates the most appropriate color values for the missing pixels.
For example, when displaying the sky, a landscape, or a smooth color transition, the processor can create intermediate shades between existing colors. This helps achieve smoother transitions and reduce abrupt color changes, improving overall color reproduction.
PurColor technology is designed to improve image quality by optimizing the colors that the TV panel is already capable of displaying. PurColor cannot expand the physical capabilities of the panel, but it can enhance the accuracy and balance of color reproduction through additional processing.
PurColor technology can also process 4K content. However, its effect will be virtually imperceptible, since the pixels already have their default colors and must be adjusted using a different algorithm.
