Wearable. Smart.
Immersive. Connected. These are all terms you'll hear every other second at CES. This new concept TV from Samsung comes hand-in-hand with a less commonly heard descriptor: bendable.
The South Korean manufacturer has a couple of these "bendable" televisions on show at CES in Las Vegas this week, the most interesting being an 85-inch Ultra HD set.
There are two ways to think of this TV: "Why did you build a TV that bends?" and "Why do I need my TV to bend?"
Both valid points. These are concept televisions at best, and a Samsung demonstrator at CES told Wired.co.uk that there were no plans to bring these exact models to market. Instead, they seem to exist to answer the two responses above: "Because we can", and "Because maybe you'd like to make movies feel a bit more immersive than a commercial for cat food" (although this writer, for the record, thinks the latter is just as worthy of total immersion).
It's quite a specific type of bending that Samsung has accomplished. This isn't a pick-it-up-and-flex-it design. Rather, the far-left and far-right sides of the display can be set to rise out of the TV's bezel, giving a slight concave effect to the screen overall. To our eyes it appeared to be roughly a couple of inches of extra depth at either side.
It's a neat idea, if not one we think provides such a thrilling benefit that we'd pre-order one. But as a proof of concept, or proof of where Samsung is investing its R&D money, it's proven to be an interesting talking point on the CES show floor about where TVs may be heading in the future.
This article was originally published by WIRED UK
