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If you're the type of person who's willing to spend obscene amounts of money on cutting-edge tech in order to momentarily wow your friends, you're in luck – LG has announced that Australian pre-orders of its experimental rollable OLED TV will open this July.
Available only in a 65-inch model, the LG Signature R1 Rollable OLED TV has been priced at a pants-shittingly high AU$130,000 – roughly the same price as a brand new Tesla Model S.
You won't find LG's Rollable OLED TV in brick and mortar stores, either – each unit must be ordered directly from LG and is made to order, with around 6-8 weeks of wait time before delivery.
Rolling in the deep
LG's ultra-thin flexible OLED screen rolls in and out of a large rectangular box that holds all of the TV's inputs, along with built-in speakers, meaning it also acts as the TV's sound system. The front-facing speaker grille is wrapped with cashmere wool, and at this astronomical price, you'd expect nothing less.
That box sits atop a metal frame with roughly the same dimensions, although it's possible that due to the custom-ordered nature of the TV, other stand options might be made available.
The R1 OLED has three different height settings – Full View (completely out), Zero View (completely in) or Line View, which reveals only a third of the display, allowing you to view quick glance information, such as weather forecasts or track sliders for music playback.
Who is this TV for?
Based on the LG Signature R1 Rollable OLED TV's price point, it's obvious that this is a product aimed exclusively at the super rich. But is the TV's rollable OLED gimmick enough to attract even those who can afford it?
According to a report out of South Korea last month, LG has only sold around 10 units in its home country to date, making the Signature R1 one of the most incredibly niche products the company has ever released – and we're talking about the company that released the LG Wing for crying out loud!
Now the real question is whether LG will be able to sell enough units to justify its own R&D costs. Hopefully, all that time and money will eventually pay off for the South Korean electronics giant in future products further down the line.