LG's 'Smart Bed' with 55-inch translucent TV is peak CES, but we're into it

(Image credit: LG)

LG's latest CES innovation gets us one step closer to the ideal gaming experience: lying down, neck crooked against the headboard, and trying not to spill instant noodles on our bed sheets. Featuring a transparent, extendable 55-inch display at one end, LG's concept is a glimpse at its vision of the future of TV tech.

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The LG Transparent OLED Smart Bed (via Tom's Guide) is a concept product that LG is showing off over at CES 2021. To call it a bed is a bit of a stretch, as it's actually just the unit that sits at the end of your bed with the impressive translucent screen stored inside. But it's still a rather smart space-saving idea, even if I can only really picture its use within swanky hotels.

When you fancy some screen time from the covers, you hit a button and the screen elevates out from the unit in around 25 seconds.

The screen within the prototype unit is 40% transparent, meaning you can see through it during operation. That's sure to effect the image quality to some degree, but I suppose the idea is to not create an entirely closed in bedroom viewing experience. Perhaps not the best case scenario for gaming, but LG is touting further uses for the transparent tech in the real-world.

You needn't roll the whole screen out, either. It can act as a hot bar of important information when fully retracted into the unit, or have the screen only partially on show.

LG Smart Bed in action, with screen elevating out of bed unit — LG Smart Bed in action, courtesy of our sister site Tom's Guide. (Image credit: LG)

LG is only bringing its transparent 55-inch bed to CES 2021 as a concept, not a fully-realised product. It might be a while before you can get your hands on one for yourself. We also don't have a price just yet, but I can assure you that a transparent, backlight-less TV won't come cheap.

And what about the breakability of it all? I mean, a transparent TV at the foot of my bed with nary a bezel in sight—what could go wrong?

Jacob earned his first byline writing for his own tech blog, before graduating into breaking things professionally at PCGamesN. Now he's managing editor of the hardware team at PC Gamer, and you'll usually find him testing the latest components or building a gaming PC.