Hisense has made a name for itself in the value television market. Need a TV with some newer features but don’t want to pay the price premium that comes with something from Samsung, Sony, or LG? Hisense is there with a television that is much cheaper.
Now, the company wants to take a shot across the bow of Samsung more directly. In a blog post, Hisense announced the CanvasTV, a direct competitor to Samsung’s The Frame television that comes in at a much lower price. We’re officially in a war of televisions that can look like art.
David Gold, President of Hisense Americas and Hisense USA, said in a statement that the CanvasTV melds “premier home entertainment with modern design sensibilities.”
CanvasTV represents Hisense’s philosophy of melding premier home entertainment with modern design sensibilities. With the ability to transform a living space into an art gallery when not in use, CanvasTV offers the perfect balance of high aesthetics, exceptional technology, and industry-leading picture quality all at Hisense’s best-in-class value.
The CanvasTV will adjust its brightness in Art Mode depending on the environment — using a light sensor to determine the proper amount of brightness. The company also says that the television includes a motion sensor that will turn off the television completely when no one is in the room.
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CanvasTV’s Art Mode unlocks a curated world of free artistic masterpieces with a collection of pre-loaded works spanning abstract, modern, and renaissance styles that transform walls into works of art. A simple press of the Art Mode button on the remote gives users the power to seamlessly transition between iconic artworks and personal photographs, which can be customized with rotation preferences and stylized mats. This versatile feature empowers users to curate their own elevated decor, turning CanvasTV into a continuously evolving artistic centerpiece.
The CanvasTV comes packed with 4K resolution and QLED with Quantum Dot Color technology that delivers over a billion shades of color. It also utilizes a matte instead of glossy display to help with glare, something that can come in handy if you have the TV in Art Mode and it is really bright out. It comes packed with HDMI 2.1, so you can actually game with a console on this thing and use Google TV with Chromecast for your smart television offerings.
Seamless ambient light adaptation via an RGB sensor further optimizes the viewing environment. Viewers will experience silky-smooth motion, regardless of content, with a 144 Hz refresh rate, courtesy of ALLM, VRR, and MEMC technology. Elevating the immersive experience is CanvasTV’s room-filling, multi-channel 2.0.2 surround sound system that envelopes audiences in rich, resonant audio whether they’re watching movies, playing games, or just listening to music.
Just like Samsung’s The Frame, the CanvasTV also features interchangeable frames that you can switch out with the television. Hisense says that the TV comes standard with a teak frame, but you can also choose to purchase a white or walnut frame.
The company has not provided pricing on the frames just yet. The interchangeable frames use magnets to attach to the back of the TV, and the company says that the television also includes its UltraSlim Wall Mount, allowing you to mount the TV in a way that makes it lie “virtually flat” against your wall, adding to the feeling that the television is actually a painting.
Samsung Frame TV mounted on a wall Image source: Jonathan S. Geller for BGR
Hisense says that the CanvasTV will be launching in “late summer” this year and be available in a 55-inch and 65-inch version. The company says that the 55-inch version will come in at $999.
There’s no denying that Hisense looked at Samsung’s The Frame and thought, “That’s a nice television, it would be a shame if someone copied it.” Despite the blatant rip-off, Hisense is doing something Samsung isn’t here — it’s starting a price war for TVs that look like art. At $999 for the 55-inch version, the Hisense version of an art TV will now be $500 cheaper than Samsung’s The Frame.
I can see a lot of people starting at the Hisense, staring at the Samsung, and then staring at the price. Does Samsung’s offering really justify a 33% higher price? We’ll have to see when the CanvasTV shows up in stores later this summer.