LG Taking Pre-Orders for that Gorgeous Curved OLED TV

News
By published

LG is taking pre-orders for its curved OLED TV in South Korea now.

LG said on Monday that it's now accepting pre-orders for the 55-inch Curved OLED TV that was first introduced in January during CES 2013.

"The entire screen surface is equidistant from the viewer’s eyes, eliminating the problem of screen-edge visual distortion and loss of detail," LG said on Monday. 

The bad news about Monday's announcement is that the curvy HDTV will initially go on sale in South Korea with shipments beginning next month. More than 1,400 LG retail stores in South Korea will begin taking orders today, priced at KRW 15 million which is approximately $13,500 USD. Timing and pricing in markets outside of Korea will be announced in the months ahead, the company said.

LG's new 55-inch Curved OLED TV, model 55EA9800), is only 7.17-inches thin and weighs just 37.48 pounds. It produces "vivid" and "realistic" images thanks to the company's proprietary WRGB four-color pixel system which adds a white sub-pixel that works in conjunction with the other red, blue and yellow pixels. An exclusive "Color Refiner" adds even greater tonal enhancement, and an infinite contrast ratio provides optimal contrast levels regardless of ambient brightness or viewing angle.

In addition to the image quality, LG said on Monday that the new Curved OLED TV features thin transparent "speakers" mounted in the crystal clear stand which provides high-quality sound without interrupting the overall curved, elegant design. Overall, the OLED TV is touted to give viewers an "IMAX-like" experience without the neck-bending monster wall-sized screen and sticky floors. Again, this may only be true for a few people parked in front of the screen.

"The announcement makes LG the first and only company to commercialize both the flat screen OLED TV, which began shipping to Korean customers in February, and the Curved OLED TV, giving LG a significant lead in the OLED segment that is expected to grow to 7 million units by 2016, according to DisplaySearch," the company said.

As previously stated, it's unknown when the Curved OLED TV will land in the States, but there's a good chance that will happen later this year – likely during the holiday season. Perhaps then local retailers will have models on display so that consumers can check out every viewing angle and determine if it's worth the hefty price.

Kevin Parrish

Kevin started taking PCs apart in the 90s when Quake was on the way and his PC lacked the required components. Since then, he’s loved all things PC-related and cool gadgets ranging from the New Nintendo 3DS to Android tablets. He is currently a contributor at Digital Trends, writing about everything from computers to how-to content on Windows and Macs to reviews of the latest laptops from HP, Dell, Lenovo, and more. 

15 Comments Comment from the forums
  • drwho1
    Well... the first free one send it my way.
    Reply
  • drwho1
    Well... the first free one send it my way.
    Reply
  • Memnarchon
    Dam, I want three...
    Reply
  • beardguy
    This is such a good idea. It makes so much sense, I mean it's a bit closer to the way we naturally see with our eyes.
    Reply
  • beardguy
    This is such a good idea. It makes so much sense, I mean it's a bit closer to the way we naturally see with our eyes.
    Reply
  • hero1
    Droool!
    Reply
  • DarkSable
    Meh. Screw the TV, give me an OLED monitor at 120Hz. I'd rather pay $13k for that than I would for a giant, neck-craning thing.
    Reply
  • kitsunestarwind
    Please make Curved monitors like this, as that would be Great for Eyefinity or Surround setups
    Reply
  • nebun
    ...and curved does what exactly....
    Reply
  • Cenobyte666
    "LG's new OLED TV design throws out the traditional flat-faced experience for a slightly conclave form factor." Conclave? Hmmm the pope factor.
    Concave! LoL :)
    Reply