Samsung is continuing its push into the premium segment with a new TV simply dubbed “The Frame”. The display hangs on the wall like a painting and shows art instead of switching off.

A frame on your wall
The TV will surely not be for everyone but if you want something different “The Frame” may be just the TV for you. It hangs on the wall as a picture frame by using Samsung’s “invisible” cable connection and “no gap” wall-mount.

- “Instead of fading to black like a conventional TV, the Lifestyle TV’s display transforms into a work of art, letting the users select custom-designed digital art pieces from The Frame. With more than 100 art pieces in multiple categories – including landscape, architecture, wildlife, action, drawing and more – to choose from, it is sure to please every design preference,” the company said.


Besides having built-in art pieces, you can customize the bezel material and place the TV on a “studio stand” instead of the wall-mount. The TV has been designed in collaboration with Yves Behar.

Samsung is not the first company to re-imagine what a TV should look like when it is inactive. In 2008, Sony launched a similar TV (the E4000 series) that could show art pieces whenever it was inactive. LG has also included a gallery mode on its wallpaper OLED and Apple shows slow-motion videos on the Apple TV when it is idle.


One issue with these types of displays is of course power consumption. Because the TV never actually switches off when displaying “art”, the display panel consumes considerable amounts of power. The manufacturer can implement low-power modes that reduce light output but it will not work well in brightly lit rooms.

Samsung did not disclose technical details but all signs point to it being a LCD panel. The Frame will be available in 55 and 65-inch models this spring. Pricing details were not announced.