LG Introduces Rollable OLED TV (arstechnica.com)

One of the 2019 TV models LG outlined at its CES press conference today was the LG Signature OLED TV R (65R9), which has a display that can roll up and disappear into its base when you're not using it. "LG calls the TV 'a revolutionary innovation that helps address the very human need for an aesthetically pleasing environment' and says it is 'redefining space' to offer unprecedented levels of 'immersion' and 'a new level of space integration,'" reports Ars Technica. From the report: LG says to expect picture quality on par with its just-announced 2019 4K OLED lineup. That means 120Hz and AI image processing using LG's new Alpha 9 Gen 2 CPU. The TV's base -- the same one it rolls into -- houses a 4.2-channel, 100-watt soundbar with Dolby Atmos support. Additionally, the TV doesn't have to scroll all the way in. As seen in one of the images at the start of this article, it can fold down to what LG calls "Line View." This has five modes: music, clock, frame, mood, and home dashboard. Music offers an interface for playing music from the base. Clock shows the time, date, and weather. Frame displays a scrolling line of photos streamed from your smartphone, which is the mode in the photo above. The mood mode is for aesthetics, and home dashboard will allow access to some of LG's usual TV software features. No price has been announced yet, but TechCrunch reports that it could cost more than the 8K TV LG announced last week, which will compete directly with Samsung's $15,000 8K offering. LG says the Signature OLED TV R will be available for purchase in the second half of the year.

Comments

What, again?

[pablo_max]

They showed the same thing last year. They also said it will be released in 2019. So, why is it really "news"?
https://www.theverge.com/2018/...

Re:What, again?

[PhunkySchtuff]

From TFA:

OK, so it's just a TV. And the R is not even a totally new concept; I saw an earlier prototype of a rollable OLED display back at CES 2009. But that display was 13-inches, had major limitations, and did not yet look like a consumer product. This time, we're looking at a full-featured, 65-inch TV that's actually coming to market this year.

Re:What, again?

[jrumney]

The innovation this time around is that they now have a screensaver of Banksy's Girl with Red Balloon that displays as it rolls up, so you can pretend you are in an auction house, in case you get sick of pretending you are at the end of an upside down 1970's slide show.

Re:What, again?

[mapkinase]

>This time, we're looking at a full-featured, 65-inch TV that's actually coming to market this year.

Now all the billions of people who had watch their movies on plastic roll-up screens with their ancient projectors can jump in to the new exciting inventions.

The TV no one asked for

[Powercntrl]

For all practical purposes, standard flat screen TVs take up no living space when wall-mounted. From the looks of it, this thing takes up a bit of floor space, and you can't even put anything on top of it, unless you wanted the stuff knocked on the floor every time you turn on your "boner TV". It truly is a missed opportunity if LG doesn't have it play this sound effect when it finishes extending.

Furthermore, the whole rollable/disappearing TV concept already exists in a products that have been available for years: A ceiling-mounted projector, and a motorized projection screen.

Re:The TV no one asked for

[rickb928]

Projection isn't yet as wonderful to view as OLED screens.

OLED screens that simply 'go away' have huge appeal. First, they let you have that wall back. For other things. Second, it's practical to deliver a rollable 200 inch screen, while a fixed 200 inch screen might not fit through your door, and would be pretty fragile. I know, nobody needs a 200 inch screen. Nobody needs an 80 inch screen either. And the minimized mode is excellent.

No one asked for Walkman cassette players. OR CDs. DVDs. Nope. Especially Walkman players, that was a market Sony created. There were maybe 100 skaters like me that strapped an underdash cassette player to a bundle of NiCd batteries, put on those Pro-4AA cans to isolate us from the real world, and limped around like we were cool. Sony figured something out that really didn't exist, and it was 'damn, i need that'. Out of nowhere. Rollable screens will be the same thing. Just not Sony.

Re:The TV no one asked for

[Immerman]

I like the idea, especially against a wall - the TV could cover pictures, windows, shelves, anything you don't need access to while watching TV. And just getting that big black rectangle out of the room is nice.

How often can i be rolled?

[prefec2]

If it can be rolled without breaking for 1000 times, it will last only little more than two years, maybe three when you can limit it to one view per day. I want to use devices for at least 10 years.

Re:How often can i be rolled?

[Immerman]

Do you never turn off your TV? I'd expect it to roll up automatically when off, and roll back out when turned on. And with good reasons beyond novelty:
1) It protects the screen from accidental damage.
2) it removes that huge ugly black rectangle from your visual space
3) it lets you put your TV anywhere - in front of pictures, a window, shelves, or anything else you don't mind having blocked while watching TV.

All of which become increasingly valuable as TVs get bigger.

They *DO* have degradation problems.

[Anonymous Coward]

They literally consume the pixel material to emit light. Not very fast, but a lifetime more similar to a CRT than to a TFT, which other than some extra stuck pixels may last you for decades with no further degradation. (I have one TFT in semi-active operation that is almost 20 years old now! CRTs too, but they were not used 24/7 for most of their life, unlike the TFT.)

Really the only problems TFTs seem to have is getting cracked when they don't have a protective plexiglass or polycarbonate sheet over their face, and having their ribbon connectors fail on portables due to constant opening and closing. Outside of those, they last effectively forever with minimal maintenance (like replacing worn out cables/capacitors if you use them too frequently or in harsh environments.) In a well kept house with low humidity and normal operating temperatures they will last effectively forever with minimal maintenance, especially if you have the soldering skills to maintain the minor problems that do happen with them.

Re:They *DO* have degradation problems.

[Immerman]

>They literally consume the pixel material to emit light.

Umm - no. The organic material degrades with use a lot faster than silicon, but it is not "consumed to emit light". A candle is consumed to emit light. A OLED, like CRT phosphors, just wear out with use. A molecule breaks here, another breaks there, eventually enough are broken that it becomes obvious.

If you could prevent the molecular breakage it would work perfectly, indefinitely. The breakage is not important to the process, unlike in a candle. It's just really hard to eliminate completely.

Re:They *DO* have degradation problems.

[Spamalope]

TFT backlights wear out as well. The cold cathode tubes dim over time. But until you've got the brightness at 100% for normal viewing it doesn't matter, and in practice capacitor failure will likely have taken the set out first.

Eh??

[Ecuador]

"the very human need" of seeing the wall behind the TV? The only case I could see this being true is if you somehow had a really ugly TV...?
Another solution in search of a problem.
We are waiting for rollable/foldable screens on mobile devices*. Give us that. It is nice to have a big screen with you to consume media, but a mobile device that doesn't fit your pocket is no good. Work on that, don't try to hide a perfectly fine TV.
Unless the master plan is for buyers of this thing to fund R&D for foldable mobile phones? I'd be fine with that.

*Personally, I'd prefer a slide out full keyboard, which is feasible with current tech (my ancient N900 was doing it great), but it seems I won't be getting that hence I'll have to settle with the foldable screen which has a greater appeal...

Re:Eh??

[rickb928]

Are YOUserious?

about time

[sad_]

i used to roll up my newspaper to smash flies and other insects, but since i don't get any newspapers anymore i've been looking for another good replacement.

Re:3D TV again?

[Spamalope]

I want it to make very large consumer sets viable. 200 inch sets can't be shipped without damage. Somewhere between 100-150 inches would comfortably fill the wall across from my couch.

I really see these being build into bookcase valences and lowering. Then the room could be decorated far more flexibly without a clash with the TV.