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Samsung Serif TV

samsung serif tv red mini
samsung serif tv red mini

Last week I was one of a very select group (that’s 10 and four of them are celebrities!) who was offered the chance to bring this new television into their home and photograph it. Some of you may recognise it; the Samsung Serif TV designed by the Bouroullec Brothers which was unveiled at the London Design Festival in September.

samsung serif navy medium
samsung serif navy medium

It’s a wonderful thing – mainly because it doesn’t look like a telly. Actually, it does look like a telly but, crucially, it also looks like a piece of furniture. And for anyone with a passing interest in their interior design, the current huge black boxes are, frankly, a bit of an eyesore. I have painted the walls of my sitting room black, partly to disguise the large blackness that is the telly which is so dominating otherwise.

serif tv reflection
the serif tv has a curtain feature that allows you to blur the screen

Why is it that the television cables and plugs are all diagonally opposite the door into the sitting room so that it doesn’t matter how fabulous your artwork, your sofa or your rug, they are all the second thing you see.

serif tv
serif tv

Well, that could all change with this. It will probably still be the first thing you see but you won’t mind, because it’s a pretty sexy bit of kit to be honest. Enid Cat certainly thought so. The shoot took twice as long as she photobombed nearly every picture.

navy blue serif tv
navy blue serif tv

The television, which is shaped like a capital I in profile, comes in navy blue (but if I call it Farrow & Ball Railings you will understand that it’s sometimes black and sometimes blue and possibly even dark grey), deep red and white. It also comes in three sizes: the red mini sits on a shelf, the medium and large have rather elegant legs as you can see from the images.

Enid is gripped by the Samsung Serif TV
Enid is gripped by the Samsung Serif TV which is shaped like a capital I

Ronan and Erwen Bouroullec are the first designers who have been given permission by Samsung to develop the user interface and, as a result of which, have come up with a couple of interesting ideas. The first of which allows the screen to double up as a clock which is perfect for the mini one in an office. The clock is rather sweetly old-fashioned too – older readers may remember watching the schools programme where a white clock on a black background ticked down the seconds till the show was due to start.

Enid and the SerifTV
Enid and the SerifTV

The other is the curtain mode. This blurs the screen and reduces it to a moving abstract pattern. Why? Well two reasons; one if, for whatever reason, you don’t want to look at the adverts – this is handy at this time of year when the children want EVERYTHING SHOWN. And two, and this is good, it’s a bit of a parental control. You know that moment where you’re deep into Silent Witness and a graphic autopsy begins just as the four-year-old wanders in because he can’t sleep? Bet you wished you could have drawn a virtual curtain across at that point don’t you. Cos he definitely ain’t sleeping now he’s seen THAT.

serif tv as shelf
the serif tv has been designed as a shelf

The other feature is that the serif parts of the letter I act as a shelf on the top so you can further incorporate the television into the furniture of the room. Years ago (in the 70s) we all had stuff on top of the telly and I remember wondering where we were supposed to put it all when they got gradually flatter and flatter. If nothing else it’s a really good place to put the remote control – stops you digging down the sides of the sofa and shouting at children for ten minutes. Or maybe that’s a cathartic part of your day…

mini red serif tv
mini red serif tv

So, would I buy one for my house? As someone who weeps hot tears whenever my husband or children complain that the television isn’t big enough and say they want to buy a new one, yes I would. Nuff said.

You can buy it online here and orders should only a week to turn around so if you’re quick you can get one in time for Christmas…..

 

 

Tags : furniturestyletelevisiontv
Kate Watson-Smyth

The author Kate Watson-Smyth

I’m a journalist who writes about interiors mainly for The Financial Times but I have also written regularly for The Independent and The Daily Mail. My house has been in Living Etc, HeartHome and featured in The Wall Street Journal & Corriere della Sera. I also run an interior styling consultancy Mad About Your House. Welcome to my Mad House.

6 Comments

  1. Hi Kate

    I’ve had one of these on order since mid October but still no-show despite a promised shipping date of early Nov.

    Nobody at Samsung customer services can or will tell me why I haven’t received it yet, or when I will.

    As we sold our old set of 10 years ahead of this arriving, it’s now looking like the family will be without a tv for Christmas.

    Do you know anyone at Samsung that might be able to help me turn this situation around?

    Going via Samsung “customer services” is proving frustrating, stressful and fruitless. 🙁

    Any help, leads or guidance greatly appreciated.

    Rob

  2. The models with legs look great, until you consider that most people will probably have to plug in a sky box/dvd player etc. I see that in your photos they haven’t even been plugged into the mains, so that’s one messy cable already to ruin the look.

    They also sit too low for me, the centre of a screen should be at about eye height when seated. Although I guess they probably wouldn’t be stable enough if the legs were longer.

    Certainly an interesting idea, but for most people the execution is a bit off and I know they’re pretty expensive.

    Awesome cat btw.

  3. Looks lovely but Enid seems purdy interested…….hope it doesn’t knock over when she tries to jump on top of it. Cats will be cats afterall..

  4. Not sure someone so beautiful can be accused of photobombing; she’s so obviously the star attraction.

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