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LG to launch noncurved OLED TV

Addressing one of our main complaints about the current 55-inch OLED TVs available today -- the fact that they're curved, not flat -- LG has launched a flat version in Europe at the IFA show.

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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.
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David Katzmaier
2 min read
First Look
Watch this: LG Gallery OLED is a 55-inch TV in a fancy frame

BERLIN -- If you were holding off on current OLED TVs because they're too curved, LG aims to flatten that objection.

The company has revealed a flat OLED TV, model 55EA8800, at the IFA 2013 show in Berlin this week. The 55-inch TV comes with a painting-esque frame for that "gallery" chic, which you can examine more closely in the slideshow below.

LG Gallery OLED puts your TV in a frame. But is it art? (pictures)

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The set should be available in Germany sometime in September, with "other markets to follow." Pricing was not announced.

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LG previously said that it wouldn't be launching a flat OLED TV here anytime soon, but LG said at the IFA 2013 show in Berlin that it would be coming to the US, after a European debut.

Currently there are only two OLED TVs on sale in the US, the Samsung KN55S9C ($8,999) and the LG 55EA9800 ($14,999$9,999), and both have curved (concave) screens rather than the flat screens used on current plasma and LED/LCD TVs.

In CNET's extensive hands-on with Samsung's TV, the curvature was a major detriment, skewing the geometry of onscreen objects. It was item No. 2, after price, on our list of seven problems with current OLED televisions.

The new flat LG 55EA8800, model 55EA880V in the UK and 55EA880W in Europe, carries a "Gallery" moniker, and the company says it'll be wall-mountable (an OLED TV first) like a piece of art. The set has a "Gallery Mode" complete with paintings from the likes of Van Gough and Gauguin, and a 2.2-channel audio system with a "Canvas Speaker."

Aside from the flat surface, the OLED screen is otherwise very similar to the 55EA9800, complete with a 55-inch size, 1080p (not 4K) resolution, and LG's RGBW subpixel technology.

For bucket loads of TV and tech news from Berlin, check out more of our IFA 2013 coverage.

Additional reporting by Luke Westaway.