A direct LED backlight is a backlight whose LED matrix is positioned directly behind the panel. In contrast, an edge LED backlight only has LEDs positioned along the edges of the screen, using “light guides” to spread the light across the entire surface of the display.
The main advantage of direct LED lies in the fact that it can provide higher brightness, as well as better backlight and black uniformity.
However, displays that utilize this type of backlight tend to be bulkier and more power-hungry compared to those that use edge LED. Moreover, the contrast is usually not as good with direct LED displays, and blacks typically appear as dark shades of gray.
Edge LED, as we have mentioned above, only has LEDs along the edges of the screen. As you might have guessed, this is more power-efficient and allows for thinner, sleeker, and better-looking TVs and monitors.
On the downside, however, Edge LED is more likely to suffer from clouding and backlight bleed issues, particularly around the edges.
