LG Releases its 77” Wallpaper TV
LG (066570.KS) wowed the TV world when it revealed its 65” ‘wallpaper’ TV in May 2015 at an event in South Korea, but gave no indication as to when (or if) the TV would be available to consumers, but the word slipped out last January, when a retailer posted pricing before LG’s press announcement. The TVs, which are <4mm and <6mm thick (65” & 77” respectively) and based on OLED display technology, which is a self-emitting process, and therefore has no backlight, allowing the sets to be extremely thin. Further, the displays are produced on a flexible substrate, which allows them to be bent to a degree and placed on a surface that might not be flat. Current models can be held to the wall with magnets and both sizes are 4K (3840 x 2160) HDR and are based on webOS 3.5. The 65” version weighs 16.8 lbs and the 77” model weighs 27.1 lbs.
Both of these unusual sets are now available for $7999 and $29,466 but wait there’s more… If you decide to buy the 77” set before the end of June (or you could buy a Hyundai (005380.KS) Santa Fe SUV or a Chevy (GM) Malibu for the same price) you can currently get a $3,572 cash rebate and an LG Tromm Styler, a 6ft high steamer system for removing clothing wrinkles, a $1499 value! It would seem that LG wants those watching their wallpaper TVs to be well dressed and wrinkle-free, although initially you would need the wrinkle remover as the 13 hours flight to Korea (and that kid kicking the back of your chair) could wrinkle your clothes. You can buy the 65” OLED wallpaper TV at your local Best Buy (BBY), although availability might be limited. The 77” model is not yet available in the US and will be released on a country by country basis going forward.
Whether you are enough of a TV enthusiast to buy the LG ‘Wallpaper’ series OLED TVs, if nothing else, they illustrate the ability of OLED displays to form non-traditional displays, and while these sets are currently novelty items reserved for NBA players and royalty, there will be a time when such technology will be a mass production item, as are conformed OLED smartphone displays that were also novelties years ago. If nothing else, the consumer electronics space is one that is so driven to innovate that it eventually finds a way to translate a lab process into one ripe for mass production, and LCD TV production, which has over 80 steps, was originally thought to be too complicated to be mass produced cost-effectively. Now the a-Si[1] process is by far the most prevalent in the display business, while OLED technology continues to grow rapidly. “When you got it, flaunt it!”[2]
[1] Amorphous silicon – the material used for the backplane in most LCD TVs
[2] Zero Mostel, “The Producers” (1968)
Both of these unusual sets are now available for $7999 and $29,466 but wait there’s more… If you decide to buy the 77” set before the end of June (or you could buy a Hyundai (005380.KS) Santa Fe SUV or a Chevy (GM) Malibu for the same price) you can currently get a $3,572 cash rebate and an LG Tromm Styler, a 6ft high steamer system for removing clothing wrinkles, a $1499 value! It would seem that LG wants those watching their wallpaper TVs to be well dressed and wrinkle-free, although initially you would need the wrinkle remover as the 13 hours flight to Korea (and that kid kicking the back of your chair) could wrinkle your clothes. You can buy the 65” OLED wallpaper TV at your local Best Buy (BBY), although availability might be limited. The 77” model is not yet available in the US and will be released on a country by country basis going forward.
Whether you are enough of a TV enthusiast to buy the LG ‘Wallpaper’ series OLED TVs, if nothing else, they illustrate the ability of OLED displays to form non-traditional displays, and while these sets are currently novelty items reserved for NBA players and royalty, there will be a time when such technology will be a mass production item, as are conformed OLED smartphone displays that were also novelties years ago. If nothing else, the consumer electronics space is one that is so driven to innovate that it eventually finds a way to translate a lab process into one ripe for mass production, and LCD TV production, which has over 80 steps, was originally thought to be too complicated to be mass produced cost-effectively. Now the a-Si[1] process is by far the most prevalent in the display business, while OLED technology continues to grow rapidly. “When you got it, flaunt it!”[2]
[1] Amorphous silicon – the material used for the backplane in most LCD TVs
[2] Zero Mostel, “The Producers” (1968)
Display Industry Capacity by backplane Process - Source: SCMR LLC, OLED-A, Company Data
LG 65" Wallpaper TV - Source: LG Electronics
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