Samsung prices S9 UHD TV, opens pre-orders in South Korea
updated 07:54 pm EST, Sun January 13, 2013
Ultra HD TV to be sold in limited quantities initially
Samsung's 85-inch ultra high-definition television has been priced ahead of its March release in South Korea. The S9 is available to pre-order in the country at a cost of 40 million won ($38,000), and though this is not necessarily the same as it will cost in the United States, the South Korean price far exceeds similar UHDTVs from other manufacturers.
Sony's own 4K-capable TV, the XBR-84X900, measures a similar 84-inches diagonally and includes a number of films mastered in the UHD format, but is on sale at $25,000, effectively $13,000 cheaper than Samsung's own device. LG also put its 84-inch 84LM9600, with a similar specifications list to the S9, on sale but at a cheaper $20,000. When the S9 was shown at CES to Electronista, a price and US release date were not provided, but the sale of the device in South Korea suggests it will be reaching US shores sooner rather than later.
The S9 is noted as being supplied in a large frame, giving the display the appearance of floating inside. It can convert content from HD to UHD resolution using Samsung's proprietary upscaling engine, and uses a quad-core processor to run apps via the 2013 Smart Hub update.
