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LG Display's crazy 65-inch OLED TV can roll up like a poster

It's the world's first big-screen TV that can be rolled up to hide away when not in use. We go hands-on.

David Katzmaier Editorial Director -- Personal Tech
David reviews TVs and leads the Personal Tech team at CNET, covering mobile, software, computing, streaming and home entertainment. We provide helpful, expert reviews, advice and videos on what gadget or service to buy and how to get the most out of it.
Expertise A 20-year CNET veteran, David has been reviewing TVs since the days of CRT, rear-projection and plasma. Prior to CNET he worked at Sound & Vision magazine and eTown.com. He is known to two people on Twitter as the Cormac McCarthy of consumer electronics. Credentials
  • Although still awaiting his Oscar for Best Picture Reviewer, David does hold certifications from the Imaging Science Foundation and the National Institutes of Standards and Technology on display calibration and evaluation.
David Katzmaier
3 min read
LG Display 65 inch Rollable OLED TV
Sarah Tew/CNET

When you roll your future TV out of sight into a little box, thank LG Display.

The leader in big-screen OLED manufacturing, not satisfied to debut the first 88-inch 8K OLED TV, showed off another world's first at CES : a 65-inch 4K OLED display that's, get this, rollable.

Although some concept big-screen TVs shown at past CES shows have been bendy, this is the first one that's flexible enough to spin up into tube form. LG's images depict it descending into a little box the size of a sound bar , but the company also talks about making the display portable. The secret, as usual, is its paper-thin organic light emitting diode display (OLED).

LG Display actually made a 65-inch OLED that rolls up

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Flat, stiff OLED TVs by LG and others currently deliver the best picture quality available and there's no reason to think this rollable display concept won't match them. LGD -- it's technically a separate company from LG Electronics, or LGE -- doesn't yet mention prosaic details like when it will hit the market or how much it might cost. But hey, this is a friggin' rollable TV, dude!

Even so, this ain't LG Display's first rollable TV rodeo. At CES 2016 I saw the same concept in an 18-inch size, and it was pretty cool then despite its puny resolution (1,200x810, not even full HD) and size. Bigger is usually better when it comes to TVs, especially with the cinematic quality of OLED.

Watch this: LG Display's amazing 65-inch OLED TV rolls up like paper

Now that I've seen the 65-inch version in person, and had the chance to roll it up and down myself using a remote control, I can say that it's not as crazy -- mainly because the rolled-up part is hidden inside that box -- but much more practical than the small one. It reminds me of those custom-installed TV risers that can make a regular TV pop up or down from within a piece of furniture. Except in this case there's no bulky furniture needed, just the bottom box itself.

That box also makes a rollable TV inherently more practical because it can house stuff like the power supply, inputs and speakers. LG Display's prototype was inside a frankly unimpressive-looking white rectangle, but it's easy to imagine the production version looking much slicker. When I asked company reps about the portability, they told me an early version actually had little handles attached, for easy toting around the house.

LG Display 65 inch Rollable OLED TV

The rollable OLED TV in "app view" mode. Surprise mostly genuine.

Sarah Tew/CNET

One of the cooler features on the demo unit was the ability to unfurl less than completely. Since the screen remains active, it can peek up just a little bit to display an information bar (above), or more than half way to create a screen in a 21:9 aspect ratio. The coolest part about the latter mode (below) is that it eliminates the need for letterbox bars above and below the screen when you're watching an ultra-widescreen movie.

LG Display 65 inch Rollable OLED TV

The rollable OLED in 21:9 mode. Yeah, I know, it's nuts.

Sarah Tew/CNET

One of the worst things about big-screen TVs is the necessity for a massive swath of black plastic taking up a chunk of wall when it's turned off. With a rollable TV that's no longer an issue, and that practicality is the main reason I think LG Display will want to perfect this technology and help manufacturers bring it to market sooner rather than later. We'll see.

Originally published January 6. Updated January 9, 9:27 a.m. PT with hands-on video.

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