UK Edition
Samsung Sero: The vertical TV designed for millennials and the Snapchat generation
The world's first vertical television designed for social media-addicted millennials will be released next month by Samsung.
Named Sero, the 43-inch screen pivots from a horizontal to a vertical mode, allowing viewers to watch content on their TV in same way as they do on smartphone apps such as Snapchat and Instagram.
Vertical videos have become popular among social media users. Over 500 million people use Instagram’s Stories feature every day, which sees users share vertical videos and photographs with their friends and followers.
The portrait-oriented videos have risen in popularity because they're quicker and easier to capture than videos recorded by tilting a smartphone sideways.
The £12,500 Sero goes on sale next month in South Korea. A Samsung spokesman said it’s unlikely that the vertical television will be released in the UK.
Samsung’s new television has 4.1-channel, 60W speakers and can be controlled by Samsung’s virtual assistant Bixby.
The company said that the vertical televisions could also be used for shopping channels to broadcast vertically with information about products displayed beneath the broadcast, for example.
Social media users reacted to the announcement of the vertical television, with many people questioning the usefulness of its vertical alignment. "I never liked vertical videos... This sounds like a nightmare," wrote one person. Another said "nobody wants this."
One social media came up with an alternative use for the television, though: "Handy if laying on the sofa," they said.
This isn't the first time the firm has unveiled an unusual design. In January, Samsung announced a new television which is comprised of tiles that can be locked together to expand or reduce the size of the screen.
“The Wall” can be made into a 75-inch screen using the tiles, or the tiles can be combined to form different shapes of screen.
Television manufacturers have also been looking to create devices which can be rolled up to save space when not in use.
LG is expected to release a new television this year which can be vertically unrolled when needed. The 65-inch television could collapse into its base, or could be partially collapsed in order to change the shape of the screen.
Last year, Samsung applied to patent a similar television, although its patent application showed a television which could be rolled up horizontally, not vertically.