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Samsung’s New SERIF TV Breaks the Design Mold
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Most consumers buying a television are primarily concerned with factors such as screen size and picture quality. How the physical television looks is largely an afterthought. Samsung, however, says there is a subset of buyers that care just as deeply about physical design appeal. They want the tech in addition to stylistic design impact and that’s exactly what Samsung is looking to deliver with its new SERIF TV. Over the years we’ve certainly witnessed quite a few highly stylized minimalist television options, but nothing – not even Panasonic’s picture frame television add-on designs offered in 2006 – has attempted to add an artistic flair quite like this.
The heart of SERIF is a 40-inch 4K television display that features High Dynamic Range functionality. Other notable specs include a 120Hz refresh rate, UHD dimming for enhanced contrast, UHD upscaling, and Samsung’s PurColor. So, from a picture perspective, SERIF should have very reasonable levels of performance for an LCD television. The user experience is further enhanced by an onboard quadcore processor that drives an accessible Smart TV experience that includes web and social media access, screen mirroring, USB media access, and device-to-TV and TV-to-device media sharing (Smart View 2.0).
The exterior, however, is a completely different story. Samsung collaborated with Parisian design duo Ronan and Erwan Bouroullec to redefine the television’s look within a room. The name SERIF derives from the design’s typographic inspiration, which led to the television taking the shape of the letter “I” when viewed from the side. Its body is rather narrow and slim, while the top and bottom portions of the television are flattened surfaces. The television can be placed directly on a flat surface or on easel like legs.
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"From the onset of designing the Samsung SERIF TV, we aimed to craft a modest and accessible object that fused our furniture design expertise with technology," said Ronan and Erwan Bouroullec. "We are thrilled to collaborate with Samsung and bring the SERIF TV to U.S. consumers."
Samsung has even designed a “curtain mode” to further integrate the television into its surroundings. This mode “veils content on the screen to give an abstract impression of what’s happening in the background.” While in this mode, users can access various features such as apps, their photo gallery, a clock, and Bluetooth audio.
Samsung is offering SERIF in both black (UN40LS001AFXZA) and white (UN40LS001CFXZA) across retail partners such as Vitra, Bo Concept NY, and Linge Roset. Consumers will also have access to blue through MoMA Design Store and Samsung.com. All three versions are selling for $1,499 and will be available in August.
Image Credits: Samsung
Most consumers buying a television are primarily concerned with factors such as screen size and picture quality. How the physical television looks is largely an afterthought. Samsung, however, says there is a subset of buyers that care just as deeply about physical design appeal. They want the tech in addition to stylistic design impact and that’s exactly what Samsung is looking to deliver with its new SERIF TV. Over the years we’ve certainly witnessed quite a few highly stylized minimalist television options, but nothing – not even Panasonic’s picture frame television add-on designs offered in 2006 – has attempted to add an artistic flair quite like this.
The heart of SERIF is a 40-inch 4K television display that features High Dynamic Range functionality. Other notable specs include a 120Hz refresh rate, UHD dimming for enhanced contrast, UHD upscaling, and Samsung’s PurColor. So, from a picture perspective, SERIF should have very reasonable levels of performance for an LCD television. The user experience is further enhanced by an onboard quadcore processor that drives an accessible Smart TV experience that includes web and social media access, screen mirroring, USB media access, and device-to-TV and TV-to-device media sharing (Smart View 2.0).
The exterior, however, is a completely different story. Samsung collaborated with Parisian design duo Ronan and Erwan Bouroullec to redefine the television’s look within a room. The name SERIF derives from the design’s typographic inspiration, which led to the television taking the shape of the letter “I” when viewed from the side. Its body is rather narrow and slim, while the top and bottom portions of the television are flattened surfaces. The television can be placed directly on a flat surface or on easel like legs.
"From the onset of designing the Samsung SERIF TV, we aimed to craft a modest and accessible object that fused our furniture design expertise with technology," said Ronan and Erwan Bouroullec. "We are thrilled to collaborate with Samsung and bring the SERIF TV to U.S. consumers."
Samsung has even designed a “curtain mode” to further integrate the television into its surroundings. This mode “veils content on the screen to give an abstract impression of what’s happening in the background.” While in this mode, users can access various features such as apps, their photo gallery, a clock, and Bluetooth audio.
Samsung is offering SERIF in both black (UN40LS001AFXZA) and white (UN40LS001CFXZA) across retail partners such as Vitra, Bo Concept NY, and Linge Roset. Consumers will also have access to blue through MoMA Design Store and Samsung.com. All three versions are selling for $1,499 and will be available in August.
Image Credits: Samsung
