IKEA to sell furniture unit with built-in TV (VIDEO)
A picture taken on February 29, 2012 shows the front of the Ikea store on February 29, 2012 in Lomme, northern France. IKEA plans to begin selling entertainment units with built-in TVs in France beginning this summer.
IKEA is getting into the TV business.
The Swedish retailer known for its ready-to-assemble furniture is introducing the UPPLEVA, which packages an LED TV, sound system and CD, DVD and Blu-ray players into a single entertainment unit with extra storage and easy connections to the Internet and music players.
True to IKEA fashion, assembly will be required.
"We came up with this because we found that people want to get rid of the cables and they don't want those mountains of remote controls either," IKEA spokeswoman Ylva Magnusson told the Associated Press.
The UPPLEVA will be available in three colors — black, gray and blue — and four sizes from 24 to 46 inches. Chinese manufacturer TCL will manufacture the electronic components, the AP said.
Cables will be neatly tucked away within the unit "never to be seen again" IKEA said in a YouTube video it is using to introduce the world to its new product.
The UPPLEVA will have a starting price of around $955 and a single remote to control all of its electronics. The entertainment unit's surface is designed to let that remote's signals through so the devices themselves can stay out of sight.
Sales are set to begin in Europe this summer.
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