South Korea’s tech giant LG has brought almost infinitely mutable OLED technology, which is now applicable to furniture and exercise apparatus.
At CES 2022, LG Display will announce some intriguing and novel flexible and semi-transparent display innovations. These will include a giant semi-circle chair home entertainment system and a new way to spin.
All these features are possible because of the OLED (organic light-emitting diode) native capabilities, which include self-emitting light—when charged— (LCD requires backlight) and an organic structure that allows them to be manufactured on thin, flexible substrates.
OLED will not only be transparent but flexible and the screen will be able to be folded like paper.
LG’s Media Chair concept has a large semi-circle seating system. Inside is a reclining chair and curved, 55-inch LG OLED with built-in Cinematic Sound OLED (CSO). Both the recliner and screen rotate in tandem inside the circle. This keeps the screen perfectly aligned with the viewer. The screen can rotate 90-degrees as well.
In addition, LG displayed a Virtual Ride system that wraps a stationary bike rider in three, brilliant 55-inch OLEDs from over their heads to the tips of their toes, all curved to create a seamless viewing experience. LG has called it an immersive system, but there are no OLEDs on the left or right side of the rider.
These new entries and the past innovations in LG’s products have exhibited how curved screens can be integrated into almost everything like curved chairs, see-through shopping kiosks, and pop-up bed screens. Also, more mainstream TV manufacturers, like LG Electronics, Sony, and Panasonic are pressing OLED technologies into Ultra HD and 8K-TV service.
Still, these LG Display concepts offer an exciting look at a future where more surfaces become displays, but it’ll only become a reality if companies start building consumer systems based on these concept designs.