AV1 Hardware Decoding in Modern Smart TVs

This article examines the current penetration rate of AV1 hardware decoding across modern smart television platforms. Driven by mandates from streaming platforms and operating system developers, AV1 hardware decoding has rapidly expanded from an experimental feature in premium sets to a standard specification across smart TV ecosystems. Below is a detailed look at how AV1 adoption currently stands across global shipments, installed base figures, and specific operating systems like Google TV, Samsung Tizen, LG webOS, and Roku.

Current Market Penetration Rates

Hardware-level AV1 decoding penetration differs substantially between newly shipped devices and the active installed base:

New TV Shipments (2023–2025): Hardware AV1 decoding has achieved an estimated 75% to 85% penetration among new global smart TV shipments. Nearly all mid-range and high-end TVs produced today include native AV1 silicon, as do most tier-one budget models.
Global Active Installed Base: Across all active smart TVs currently in living rooms, penetration sits between 40% and 50%. Because the average consumer television replacement cycle lasts roughly six to eight years, legacy sets manufactured prior to 2020 dilute the overall active footprint.

Adoption Across Smart TV Platforms

Android TV and Google TV

Google has been the most aggressive proponent of AV1 adoption. In early 2021, Google enacted a compliance mandate requiring all new Android TV devices launched with Android 10 or later to include native AV1 hardware decoding.

Penetration: Virtually 100% of newly certified Google TV and Android TV displays support hardware AV1.
Key SoC Drivers: MediaTek (Pentonic series), Realtek, and Amlogic have made AV1 standard in their reference designs for Android TV partners, ensuring budget brands such as TCL, Hisense, and Philips comply automatically.

Samsung (Tizen OS)

Samsung introduced AV1 hardware decoding in its 2020 8K QLED models and progressively rolled it down to its 4K line-up.

Penetration: Supported on nearly all 4K and 8K models released from 2022 onward, including the Neo QLED, OLED, and Crystal UHD series.
Budget Tier: Low-end legacy displays sold prior to 2022 lack decoding silicon, but the current production catalogue has broad AV1 coverage.

LG (webOS)

LG began embedding native AV1 decoding with the introduction of the Alpha 9 Gen 3 processor in 2020, focusing first on 8K models and premium OLEDs.

Penetration: By 2021, AV1 support expanded to the majority of LG's 4K NanoCell, QNED, and standard UHD lines using the Alpha 7 and lower-tier processors.
Current Status: Roughly 90% of newly sold LG TVs feature native hardware AV1 capabilities.

Roku and Amazon Fire TV Platforms

Both Roku and Amazon initially lagged behind Google and Samsung in hardware decoding implementation.

Roku TV: AV1 entered the ecosystem with the 2020 Roku Ultra and has since become standard across high-end and mid-tier Roku TV models produced by partners like TCL and Hisense. Lower-cost, sub-1080p Roku TVs still occasionally ship with legacy SoCs that omit AV1.
Amazon Fire TV Edition: Amazon integrated AV1 into the Fire TV Stick 4K Max in 2021 and subsequently added it to the built-in Fire TV Omni and 4-Series models. Most new smart TVs running Fire TV OS support AV1 hardware decoding out of the box.

Primary Drivers Behind High Penetration

Platform Requirements: YouTube requires AV1 decoding to stream in 8K and prefers it for high-frame-rate 4K content. Netflix has steadily shifted its 4K streams to AV1 to reduce CDN bandwidth costs, actively prioritizing TV sets with verified hardware support.
Silicon Cost Reduction: Semiconductor manufacturers have fully integrated AV1 blocks into entry-level system-on-chips (SoCs). Because AV1 silicon footprint carries minimal licensing or die-space penalties, it is no longer cost-prohibitive for low-cost television manufacturers.
Broadcasting Standards: Emerging transmission profiles and regional broadcast considerations (such as Brazil's TV 3.0 standard) selected AV1 or related VVC codecs, reinforcing television makers' commitment to long-term hardware compatibility.