Ikea to integrate TV, Blu-ray, sound system into sideboard
Flat-pack AV kit, anyone?
Ikea, the Swedish flat-pack furniture giant, is to offer its design-conscious punters consumer electronics equipment, it said today.
Heck, if Apple can build a global business on the back of stylish gadgets, why not Ikea, the acme of Scandinavian minimalist chic?
Ikea won't simply offer TVs, Blu-ray players, wireless audio systems and such, but will integrate these gadgets into furniture. They'll all operate from a single remote.
Why buy a TV and a table to sit it on separately when you can buy the two together and be sure they'll both look good, and that they'll keep the cables out of sight. That's Ikea's pitch.
"We've had very clear signals from customers that there is a need to be able to buy and integrate home electronics with the furniture in a simple way," said Tolga Öncu, sales chief at IKEA Sweden, told Reuters.
Ikea's electronics come from Chinese CE giant TCL.
The product range - called Uppleva: it means 'Experience' - will go on sale in Sweden in June, before being rolled out to other countries in the autummn. The UK won't get a look-in until 2013. ®
COMMENTS
Re: Will avoid, lesson already learned
Well wood is a natural product and does change colour depending on the source. This is hardly ikea's fault is it.
Re: It's called a Radiogram
Damn. You beat me to it.
There's a telly in the mix...........a Televisiogram? Tell you what, let's just add a webcam and a Skype connection and call it an Interrossiter......
Re: new version of gramaphone sideboard
"no new ideas just recycled ones"
Was that double post a self referential joke?
Mines the one with the coat in the pocket.
Presumably all the electronics will come in kit form and you'll have to assemble them yourself.
Re: what do I do a couple years down the line
It's from Ikea. You sweep up the remaining bits and sprinkle them on the garden as compost.
