Transparent HDTV Loewe Invisio Is The Future, But It's Not The Apple iTV (PHOTOS)

German television maker Loewe revealed its vision for the future of home entertainment with the Loewe Invisio, a sleek, transparent, high-definition television that obsolesces contemporary designs -- at least in the looks department.

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The design, which was shortlisted in the 2011 iF Concept Design competition, "[creates] non-transparent [and] solid moving pictures with rich color reproduction and full contrast range," designer Michael Friebe told Yanko Design.

Plus, when its turned off, the transparent glass display won't sully your living room the way a big black box might.

Earlier this week, rumors circulated about an potential acquisition of Loewe by Apple that some speculated would bring the Invisio to the U.S. market, purportedly as an incarnation of the highly-anticipated Apple TV.

But during his company's annual meeting Tuesday, CEO Oliver Seidl denied Loewe had been in acquisition talks with Apple, Bloomberg News reported, citing the German newspaper Handelsblatt.

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Comments

[JackTheSkipper]

08:37 PM on 05/17/2012

No, the future is not about transparent screen or super thin TVs. It is 3D projection and holograms.

[wildeyed]

02:23 PM on 05/17/2012

I want one!!! I am soooo f'n sick of being offered only piano black by EVERY manufacturer. Where is the competition?

[Jared Jentzsch]

12:12 AM on 05/18/2012

It increases the contrast appearance on LED's and makes for a better movie experience. Not really needed on a Plasma, but they are heavier and hotter, but have an unlimited contrast and better pic. HD Tubes have the best pictures, but no longer exist.

[Warren Yuill]

08:33 AM on 05/17/2012

I'm waiting untill they come out with brain implanted tv's
Untill then...my old sears 12in B&W is gonna keep its place secure on top of that stylish blue plastic milk crate I stole 25 years ago from behind the Mac's Milk.
Invisable tvs...duh
I've outlasted them all.
Colour ...portable......rear projection......plasma...LCD..... LED, you name it.
Sears home electronics kicks butt.

[tcpcat]

06:56 AM on 05/17/2012

ooooooooooo! that looks sooo cool

[David LS]

01:00 AM on 05/17/2012

Apple can buy a firm that has some new fanciful products, but that is short dead end road.
Apple is a marketing firm and cant do what IBM, RPI, Cal Tech, TI, MIT and Samsung can and that is develop the actual next generation of technical advances that we will use.
Their a recognized name with a lot of cash sequestered overseas, but that will no be a long lived fact if tech history follows the path it has for the last 50 years.

[Kestrel10]

03:25 PM on 05/17/2012

Apple is an engineering and software company. It just happens to make products that aren't ugly. Samsung, also an outstanding engineering company, also makes some great looking products. It is easier to market good looking products, see Apple and Samsung. That doesn't make you a marketing company.

[David LS]

03:45 PM on 05/17/2012

Apple makes nothing themselves, they just conceptualize what others have engineered and developed.
Apple Retina display is a 4 year old Samsung development.
Every part in every Apple device is made by somebody else.
They are a dead ended marketing firm and after this initial thrill is gone they will need more than Cad/Cam to continue make money.

[DRaymond]

08:00 PM on 05/16/2012

Sounds like a solution to a problem that does not exist?  Who wants to see the wallpaper behind the screen when watching a show or movie?

There could be a small market for it in computer displays, but not for entertainment.

[wilray]

07:55 PM on 05/16/2012

So I should be okay with my living room bring sullied with a huge transparent piece of glass?

[jasonedward]

10:33 PM on 05/16/2012

As opposed to an opaque block taking a visual chunk out of the room? I have several book cases with hollowed out sides and backs. Where they along side on a long wall, the opened sides visually carve less out of the room. The cases and contents appear more as coming from the walls rather than jutting forward sharply. A clear TV may not be so obtrusive from any angle that's not head on. I like the idea so long as there's no cable nightmare going on behind. :P

[wilray]

10:44 PM on 05/16/2012

Many people have cabinetry or credenzas where the entire tv disappears when it is not being watched.

[ajvizz]

06:39 PM on 05/16/2012

Is that a concept? ... there are no wires and no wall mount

[ConfuciusSay-]

06:19 PM on 05/16/2012

It looks clean and minimalist- I like it.

[jgeurian21]

05:51 PM on 05/16/2012

Quick Question: how do you wall mount it?

[eurisko67]

03:46 PM on 05/17/2012

Very carefully.

[Ppenguinator]

04:51 PM on 05/16/2012

Excellent. I'll get a lovely view of the wall behind the TV. I'm sure it would be great if you kept it in the middle of the room, for some reason.

[J0E1]

04:10 PM on 05/16/2012

Plus, when its turned off, the transparent glass display won't sully your living room the way a big black box might.

Sorry but that hideously bulky silver bottom sullies the living room more than any nice "black box" does right now.  Plus the fact that you will need to paint the wall behind your TV black or dark grey just to get a decent picture could also be an issue.  Who has black painted walls?

[jgeurian21]

03:58 PM on 05/16/2012

And yet 2 years ago Sammy debuted transparent TVs.

http://inhabitat.com/samsung-unveils-solar-powered-zero-energy-transparent-tv/
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f_PN33BcHgw

[James Kelly Williamson]

03:01 AM on 03/05/2013

Samsung owns 1/3 of Loewe AG. They own the Invisio clear tv and were probably responsible for developing it. That is why you saw this on a Samsung website.

[anthonyparker80]

03:14 PM on 05/16/2012

Not even remotely related to Apple Computer ...as the headlines suggested, HP should be ashamed of this sort of masked advertising

[JohnTheMac]

03:59 PM on 05/16/2012

Sort of is, through rumor. A few days ago, Wall Street had a rumor floating around that Apple wanted to buy this company out.
Either way, it's a pretty cool looking TV.

[Max Load]

02:49 PM on 05/16/2012

Damn, that's a sexy TV.