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LG Introduces First Big-Screen OLED TV in the U.S.

HT Staff  |  Jul 23, 2013

Super-Thin, Curved Screen Model Launched at Best Buy’s Magnolia Design Center

In a surprise move, LG Electronics announced yesterday that the first OLED TV in the U.S. is being offered for sale at Best Buy’s flagship Magnolia Design Center store in Richfield, MN.

The 55-inch 55EA9800, which carries a suggested retail price of $14,999, weighs less than 38 pounds and has a curved screen that is only 0.17 inches thick at its edges. The TV will also be offered for sale at Best Buy Magnolia stores in Los Angeles, New York, Miami, Houston, Dallas, San Francisco, Chicago, Seattle, and San Antonio in the coming weeks. A rollout to other Magnolia locations across the country is expected to follow.

In addition to Smart TV capabilities, including voice and gesture control, the TV has 3D capability and is based on LG’s proprietary WRGB four-color pixel system, which has a white sub-pixel that works in conjunction with conventional red, green, and blue pixels. The TV is also the first OLED TV to achieve THX Display Certification, signifying that it passed more than 600 THX tests to ensure picture quality worthy of a professional post-production display.

Describing the TV’s image quality as vivid and realistic, LG said the set delivers an “infinite contrast ratio for optimal contrast levels regardless of ambient brightness or viewing angle.”

LG cited DisplaySearch projections that global demand for OLED TV is expected to grow to more than 7 million units by 2016 and said it is the first company to commercialize both flat-screen OLED, which has been available in Korea since January, and curved OLED, which was offered for sale in Korea in April.

LG said it took five years to develop a screen with the optimal curve. Instead of mounting speakers in the display itself, “thin transparent film speakers” are built into the TV’s stand.

COMMENTS
Oruki's picture
Submitted by Oruki on July 23, 2013 - 6:30pm

I just got back from a quick visit to the Richfield Best Buy and the TV looks amazing in person! I think it lived up to all the hype and then some. Colors and blacks looked amazing :) Exciting time for TV's with 4k and OLED all hitting at once!

aopu.mohsin's picture
Submitted by aopu.mohsin on July 24, 2013 - 8:57pm

Wouldn't it be nice to have an OLED TV with 4K resolution? How long will that take?

MrSatyre's picture
Submitted by MrSatyre on July 24, 2013 - 10:05am

Did you mean to say "LG's first OLED in the US"? Wasn't the little Sony XEL-1 TV the first OLED in the US?

Bob Ankosko's picture
Submitted by Bob Ankosko on July 30, 2013 - 1:59pm
The headline has been adjusted to read '...First Big-screen OLED..."
notabadname's picture
Submitted by notabadname on July 24, 2013 - 7:49pm

I can understand a 100" screen curving for the viewers (perhaps) as it has a width that may be significantly wider than the area for viewing-so all viewers benefit, but it makes no practical sense for a 55" screen. The screen is small enough that viewers on the right side of a couch have an unnecessarily increased angle-off to the right side of screen as it angles towards the left side of the couch. Just because it is easy to make OLED curved, doesn't mean you should. A gimmick in this instance IMO.

aopu.mohsin's picture
Submitted by aopu.mohsin on July 24, 2013 - 9:07pm

+1.

And unfortunately, we, as general consumer, all get caught up with these marketing gimmick. Seems like, the more information they have on their boxes, the more attraction they get from us. Tsk... tsk... tsk...

Billy's picture
Submitted by Billy on August 2, 2013 - 9:22am

I also just saw this TV in person yesterday. I was blown away, not 15K blown away, but it was pretty nice. It was next to a very nice Samsung in BBs Magnolia area, playing off the amplified signal all the rest were using, by far the best picture, not even comparable really, it was that good. I too do not understand the silly curved screen, reminds me of the screens from the first CRT projector systems 30 years ago. The salesmen said they delivered two in the Twin Cities last week. Can you imagine being able to drop 15K on a whim for a 50 inch HD?

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