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Samsung's Serif TV is a font of ugly

Samsung's Serif TV is a font of ugly

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New TVs tend to get noticed for being super-thin or flexible, but Samsung's latest set instead wants to give the television a little depth. The company has collaborated with French designers Ronan and Erwan Bouroullec to create the Serif TV — a stylish design that aims to make the television a piece of furniture, rather than a display to shove up against the wall. "What we were looking for was a solid presence that would sit naturally in any environment," said the Bouroullecs in a press release.

Three sizes: 40-inch, 32-inch, and 24-inch

The TV was inspired by the shape of the letter "I" in a serif font and is available in three colors (white, red, and blue), and three sizes — an ultra HD 40-inch model; a full HD 32-inch version; and a regular HD 24-inch set. The two larger sizes come with optional legs so that the TV can stand up on its own, but the jutting bottom and top of the case (which also acts a shelf) will mean you can't fix it flush against a wall. The Bouroullec brothers also turned their attention to the rear of the device, covering up its ports and connectors with a fabric back panel, and designing a new interface and remote control to match the Serif's style.

The Samsung Serif TV. (Samsung)

Whether or not you think the Serif would look good in your home is a matter of personal taste, but it's certainly good to have a TV that is an aesthetic choice, rather than simply a functional one. The Serif has divided opinion in The Verge's offices, with some (myself included) thinking it's a genuinely good-looking TV, while others, well, they wrote the headline. [Editor's note: he's wrong.]

There's no official word on global pricing yet, but the Daily Mail reports that the three sets — from smallest to largest — will sell in the UK for £499 ($772), £699 ($1,081), and £1,199 ($1,855). The Serif will go on sale in the UK, France, Sweden, and Denmark from November 2nd.