Samsung now selling 55-inch curved OLED in South Korea for $13,000

Samsung Curved OLED TV — Image used with permission by copyright holder

Earlier today in South Korea, Samsung announced its 55-inch curved OLED TV is now available for the rather lofty price of 15 million Korean Won, or about $13,000 U.S. The announcement comes less than two months after LG touted it’s similarly-priced 55-inch model was available. So what does this mean for those of us outside Korea?

Considering that neither Samsung nor LG have brought their flat OLED TV’s stateside just yet, we think it’s safe to say we’ll be waiting a while for the curved version to make its way here. We were teased with an up-close look at LG’s OLED TV last July in Moncao, where LG seemed optimistic that it would be available in the U.S. soon. Then, at CES 2013, LG announced its OLED would be shipping in the U.S. by March. And while Samsung has been a little less specific with us in terms of when we could see its OLED come this way, it would appear it is still “testing the waters” in Korea before it allows its OLED TV’s to make their U.S. market debut.

While this may feel disappointing to those of us salivating from across the ocean, the wait may actually be a good thing. OLED manufacturing has proven to be tricky for both Samsung and LG, and we would hope that once the technology does make its way here it will make a strong showing.

OLED technology utilizes organic materials that generate light when charged with electricity. The result is a stunning picture with absolute blacks and incredible brightness. Another benefit to OLED is that it can be used in extremely thin and, as seen with the curved displays, flexible panels. The benefit to the curved design is meant to be an “IMAX-like” experience, where the sides of the image are equidistant to the viewers eyes as the center of the image. The wrap-around effect is intended to be more immersive.

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