Introduced in 2013, the curved TV was touted as being the next step in television design and one that consumers would enthusiastically embrace over time. Just like it sounds, it’s a TV with a slightly curved screen rather than the flat screen we’ve come to expect.
Sadly the curved TV never took off and has largely disappeared with even early manufacturers of the product discontinuing products in the late 2010s.
Curved TVs failed to catch on for a number of reasons including:
- Their high price
- Limited options to choose from
- Failure to match the theater screens they mimicked
- Perceived limitations compared to flat TVs outweighed any benefit
Curved TVs look cool from a visual perspective but they attempted to solve a problem that didn’t exist: We really didn’t need a new type of TV that on the one hand improved on some things but that had several downsides, including a higher price tag.
Below we’ll discuss why curved televisions didn’t become the next big thing, pros and cons and why you still might consider buying on for specific reasons.
Why the curved TV failed to catch on
As mentioned above, the curved television didn’t become a thing for several main reasons:
Their high price
Curved TVs initially came with a higher price tag that a similarly-sized flat screen TV. And this was at a time when generally speaking, the price of televisions was dropping. The only way you would spend more on a TV would be if the more expensive model gave you something tangible that made it better than the cheaper option.
In fact, curved TVs do give certain viewers things that we’ll discuss below in more detail such as better depth, impressive 3D capabilities, better contrast and wider field of view.
But does the average person care or even know about any of these things? When you search for a new TV, do you research these features or do you search by brand, size, price and compatibility with the streaming services you use?
It seems that the benefits and higher price weren’t worth it for most consumers.
Limited options to choose from
Flat screen TVs are available in virtually any size you’d like given the number of manufacturers who produce them. They are widely available with virtually whatever feature(s) you want. The same can’t be said for curved TVs.
While manufacturers like Samsung got on board early, not every manufacturer produced curved TVs. It never got to the point where non-brand name manufacturers produced them en masse which would not only help to increase the viability but also lower the retail price.
Lack of buying options certainly didn’t help and consumers often found that they had to pay even more than they wanted to, in order to get the size and type of curved TV they wanted.
Failure to match the theater screens they mimicked
Movie theaters have curved screens that vary in size. While they generally use aspect ratios
of 2.39:1 (scope aspect ratio) and 1.85:1 (flat aspect ratio), the actual screen size in various theaters around the country can be very different.
In fact, some multi-plex theaters may have different screen sizes in the same movie theater facility too.
But one things remains constant: The movie theater screens are clearly much larger than any TV screen the average person has in their home.
Regardless of where you sit in a movie theater, the screen is wide enough to curve around the entire audience to some degree. The closer you sit to the center of the seating, the better, but you will still see benefits sitting elsewhere.
Plus, cinemas turn the lights off completely, another way that enhances the curved screen style.
If you own a curved TV and are watching it yourself at home, you can easily center yourself in front of the TV and receive the benefits that this design has. But when you have more people on a couch sitting around a curved TV, not everyone can sit dead center which is where you need to be to enjoy the benefits that a curved screen has to offer.
And if you have lights on or coming in from windows, the picture isn’t as good as if it was dark.
At this point, the design benefit of the curved TV style is largely muted.
Perceived limitations compared to flat TVs outweighed any benefit
As we’ll also see below, the cons of a curved TV really outweigh many benefits. While a curved TV is kind of cool to look at sitting on a stand, it looks kind of weird when mounted on a wall since it doesn’t sit flat.
As mentioned, curved TVs are also more expensive than flat TVs.
Limited options when compared to the easy-to-find flat TVs also come into play. You simply never had the choice as with flat televisions.
And also as mentioned above, if you don’t sit dead center in front of a curved TV, the main benefits are lessened.
Curved TV pros and cons
Here is a summary of the widely perceived pros and cons of a curved TV.
| Curved TV pros | Curved TV cons |
| Offers better natural depth than a flat TV which appeals to the human eye. | The curved design makes them take up more space than a flat TV. |
| Depth enhancement technology was often utilized by manufacturers to improve the 3D effect on screen. | While a flat TV sits flush, a curved TV curves out almost as if it’s peeling off the wall. |
| The contrast on curved TVs is better than on a flat style TV, offering deeper colors and better overall picture quality. | Curved TVs were more expensive than traditional flat TV at a time when televisions in general were coming down in price. |
| Curved TVs offer a wider field of view and wider effective viewing angle over flat TV styles. | As they were a new product, there weren’t as many size options to choose from. |
| For many people, the curved screen style is aesthetically pleasing and offers a high quality look. | The curved shape mimics a theater screen but can’t replicate it due to the vast size differences between the two. |
| Modern curved TVs are now successfully marketed as gaming monitors due to their appeal among gamers looking for a quality view. | The ideal picture quality is noted when you are sitting directly in front of the screen. |
| Can be placed or hung in corners slightly easier than a flat screen due to the curvature. | The images on the TV can appear to bend when you sit away from the center. |
What could I use a curved TV for?
Even though some television manufacturers have exited the market, curved TVs are still produced. In fact, many are now marketed and used by gamers which makes sense: Most gamers play by themselves or perhaps with one other person at most so it’s easy to sit in the center and get the best benefits of the curved TV style.
If you require a monitor for another reason such as watching movies by yourself, for work or for stock trading, it might be another reason to buy a curved TV.