Remember those celebrity-owned TVs that sink into a bed frame or a cabinet on MTV Cribs? Those were pretty neat because it gave you the ability to hide your TV out of plain sight. Perhaps the 65-85-inch black rectangle doesn’t suit the room or because you’re trying to cut down on TV time, what’s for sure is that there are a lot of people who don’t want their TVs to be the centrepiece of their home.
Those TVs on MTV Cribs were pretty neat. Watching those episodes make you want to get one for yourself. However, the truth is, those were complicated contraptions that require a contractor to make a TV-sized hole on your furniture and install a motorized lift to make it sink and rise. If the motor fails, or if the TV needs repairs then you’re screwed.
Furthermore, the TV’s accessibility would get totally hampered with this set-up because they become part of the furniture that you install it on. If you want to plug something in such as an SD card to show your pictures, you’re out of luck. These days when TVs also function as a multimedia viewer, this inaccessibility is unacceptable.
Luckily, LG has come up with a solution for people who don’t want their TV to be the centrepiece of their home. The LG Signature OLED TV R was introduced to the world during this year’s CES. When inactive, the entire footprint of the TV shrinks to the size of a typical soundbar and expands to a 65-inch 4K display monster with cinematic quality with a sound system to die for.
Tech Specs
It's one of the company's best TVs overall when it comes to image quality so people aren't just going to get this because of the sheer novelty of having a rollable TV.
It’s got the same image processing as the stellar OLED C and E series in the LG model line. This means it’s equipped with AI ThinkQ technology enabling it to learn your preferences and serve you exactly the settings that you want when you want it.
It also touts the webOS 4.5 portal that would work seamlessly with Google Assistant and Amazon Alexa straight out of the box. The company is also in the middle of trying to make Apple’s AirPlay 2 and Homekit work natively with the TV.
It also covers an impressive array of HDR bases such as HDR 10, Dynamic HDR, Dolby Vision, and Technicolor. All of these ensure that you’re going to have the best viewing experience that the company has to offer.
As for ports, it has all of the basics and then some. It has 2 USB-A ports for your media and 4 HDMI 2.1 ports making it future proof.
OLED Makes It All Possible
LG has been pushing the envelope for OLED technology recently. The wallpaper TV that came in at an ultra-low-profile thinness last year was a favourite among those in-the-know such as YouTubers and tech enthusiasts who ogled at the tech cramped inside such a thin TV. This year’s rollable TV seems to be tailor-made for those with a more refined minimalistic taste.
When it’s hidden, you wouldn’t even think that there’s a TV inside the room. The soundbar where the rolled-up TV sinks into looks like a piece of furniture with an aluminium finish.
The OLED technology makes these all possible. The lack of need for a backlight and the flexibility of the material plays such a huge roll in this TV. The back of the screen has horizontal slats that support the OLED as it spools and unspools into the soundbar.
The rollability gives the TV 3 modes. The Full View option is the standard full-screen TV for maximum movie watching, there's also a Line mode which lets you use just the top quarter of the screen, and lastly, there's a Zero View Mode that lets you take advantage of the Dolby Atmos soundbar that can absolutely blow the biggest audiophile away. Hopefully, there will be an option to make the screen fit the 21:9 aspect ratio of movies to make the ubiquitous black bars disappear.
Audio
The TV isn’t the only top-notch hardware that comes with the LG OLED TV R. They make use of the TV storage space by installing an excellent 4.2-channel Dolby Atmos speakers with a cumulative output of 100W. With some AI magic, the audio can be upscaled to mimic the deep sound of a 5.1 surround system. So even if it’s just front-firing, you’d still be able to mimic a more complete system.
Who is it for?
Overall, the value proposition of the LG OLED TV R would probably appeal to penthouse dwellers whose views are to die for. These homes are ruined by having a huge black rectangle in the middle of the living room spoiling the view. Some homeowners, therefore, settle for not having a TV at all. LG gives them an excellent option with a TV that can easily be tucked away from view.
At an expected price of around $15,000, it seems that only those people who can afford it in reality. Even if that’s the case, LG’s guts to keep pushing the envelope in the TV segment makes the case for charging that much for the TV.
It’s an overall excellent device that has a lot of promise for the future of TVs. It’s got the best that LG has to offer when it comes to image quality and the best of Dolby Atmos acoustic technology available to the form factor. More than both of those, it’s got the marks of an innovative product looking to make a splash in the TV market for years to come. It’s an uncompromising TV that will surely make anyone’s viewing experience a lot better.
Those TVs on MTV Cribs were pretty neat. Watching those episodes make you want to get one for yourself. However, the truth is, those were complicated contraptions that require a contractor to make a TV-sized hole on your furniture and install a motorized lift to make it sink and rise. If the motor fails, or if the TV needs repairs then you’re screwed.
Furthermore, the TV’s accessibility would get totally hampered with this set-up because they become part of the furniture that you install it on. If you want to plug something in such as an SD card to show your pictures, you’re out of luck. These days when TVs also function as a multimedia viewer, this inaccessibility is unacceptable.
Luckily, LG has come up with a solution for people who don’t want their TV to be the centrepiece of their home. The LG Signature OLED TV R was introduced to the world during this year’s CES. When inactive, the entire footprint of the TV shrinks to the size of a typical soundbar and expands to a 65-inch 4K display monster with cinematic quality with a sound system to die for.
Tech Specs
It's one of the company's best TVs overall when it comes to image quality so people aren't just going to get this because of the sheer novelty of having a rollable TV.
It’s got the same image processing as the stellar OLED C and E series in the LG model line. This means it’s equipped with AI ThinkQ technology enabling it to learn your preferences and serve you exactly the settings that you want when you want it.
It also touts the webOS 4.5 portal that would work seamlessly with Google Assistant and Amazon Alexa straight out of the box. The company is also in the middle of trying to make Apple’s AirPlay 2 and Homekit work natively with the TV.
It also covers an impressive array of HDR bases such as HDR 10, Dynamic HDR, Dolby Vision, and Technicolor. All of these ensure that you’re going to have the best viewing experience that the company has to offer.
As for ports, it has all of the basics and then some. It has 2 USB-A ports for your media and 4 HDMI 2.1 ports making it future proof.
OLED Makes It All Possible
LG has been pushing the envelope for OLED technology recently. The wallpaper TV that came in at an ultra-low-profile thinness last year was a favourite among those in-the-know such as YouTubers and tech enthusiasts who ogled at the tech cramped inside such a thin TV. This year’s rollable TV seems to be tailor-made for those with a more refined minimalistic taste.
When it’s hidden, you wouldn’t even think that there’s a TV inside the room. The soundbar where the rolled-up TV sinks into looks like a piece of furniture with an aluminium finish.
The OLED technology makes these all possible. The lack of need for a backlight and the flexibility of the material plays such a huge roll in this TV. The back of the screen has horizontal slats that support the OLED as it spools and unspools into the soundbar.
The rollability gives the TV 3 modes. The Full View option is the standard full-screen TV for maximum movie watching, there's also a Line mode which lets you use just the top quarter of the screen, and lastly, there's a Zero View Mode that lets you take advantage of the Dolby Atmos soundbar that can absolutely blow the biggest audiophile away. Hopefully, there will be an option to make the screen fit the 21:9 aspect ratio of movies to make the ubiquitous black bars disappear.
Audio
The TV isn’t the only top-notch hardware that comes with the LG OLED TV R. They make use of the TV storage space by installing an excellent 4.2-channel Dolby Atmos speakers with a cumulative output of 100W. With some AI magic, the audio can be upscaled to mimic the deep sound of a 5.1 surround system. So even if it’s just front-firing, you’d still be able to mimic a more complete system.
Who is it for?
Overall, the value proposition of the LG OLED TV R would probably appeal to penthouse dwellers whose views are to die for. These homes are ruined by having a huge black rectangle in the middle of the living room spoiling the view. Some homeowners, therefore, settle for not having a TV at all. LG gives them an excellent option with a TV that can easily be tucked away from view.
At an expected price of around $15,000, it seems that only those people who can afford it in reality. Even if that’s the case, LG’s guts to keep pushing the envelope in the TV segment makes the case for charging that much for the TV.
It’s an overall excellent device that has a lot of promise for the future of TVs. It’s got the best that LG has to offer when it comes to image quality and the best of Dolby Atmos acoustic technology available to the form factor. More than both of those, it’s got the marks of an innovative product looking to make a splash in the TV market for years to come. It’s an uncompromising TV that will surely make anyone’s viewing experience a lot better.