Priced at $400,000! Is the World's First Tri-Fold TV Hinting at the Next Battleground for High-End TVs?

Just as the smartphone world is buzzing with discussions about tri-fold designs, the television industry is quietly undergoing its own revolution. Porsche Design has collaborated with luxury TV manufacturer C Seed to launch the C SEED 201, the world's first tri-fold television aimed at the ultra-luxury market. Its price tag is as stunning as its design: approximately $400,000. This raises a fundamental question: does a television really need to fold?

 

C SEED 201

 

Why Make a Tri-Fold TV?

The C SEED 201 isn't a "folding screen" in the traditional sense of a flexible panel. Instead, it’s composed of five separate Micro LED panels. When not in use, the entire screen assembly retracts into a sleek metal base on the floor or a custom cabinet. Upon activation, a motorized mechanism lifts the panels, which then unfold and lock into place to form a seamless giant screen. The design is a response to the sheer size of modern luxury TVs, which can range from 137 inches to a massive 201 inches. A conventional flat design of this scale would dominate any living space, appearing as a massive black wall when turned off. The folding mechanism allows the television to simply disappear, preserving the aesthetic integrity of high-end interiors.


C SEED 201

 

Performance is not compromised for form. The indoor version's five screens boast a peak brightness of 800 to 1,000 nits and a 30,000:1 contrast ratio. The outdoor version, comprised of seven panels, pushes brightness to an incredible 4,000 nits to combat ambient light in open spaces. This focus on aesthetic integration and performance underscores its purpose: to hide a giant screen in plain sight, a feature that may become more common as super-sized TVs enter the mainstream.

 

C SEED 201

 

After All the Experiments, What is the Best Form for a TV?

The television has constantly experimented with its form factor. The journey began with bulky CRT sets, which gave way to the slim, wall-mountable flat-panel designs of plasma and LCD TVs around the 2000s. This shift fundamentally changed living room layouts. Around 2013-2015, Samsung and LG heavily promoted curved TVs, promising a more immersive experience. However, the benefits were limited to a single viewer in a central position, and the form factor never achieved widespread adoption. Other innovations included Samsung's rotating The Sero for vertical video and LG's rollable TV, which, like the tri-fold concept, allowed the screen to be hidden. Despite these creative efforts, the flat-panel TV has remained the dominant form, striking the perfect balance between experience, cost, and spatial adaptability for the vast majority of households.

 

 

C SEED tri-fold TV

 

Foldable Giant-Screen TVs Might Struggle to Become Popular

The viability of foldable TVs depends on consumer demand for giant screens. Recent market data shows a clear trend: while overall TV shipments have declined, sales of large-screen TVs are booming. Models sized 75 inches and 85 inches are top sellers, and the 98-inch category is growing rapidly. Major brands like Hisense, Samsung, LG, and TCL are continuously launching new 100-inch-plus models, signaling strong market interest. As these giant screens become more common, the problem of a huge, black, visually intrusive object in the living room will become more pronounced. This is where the need for foldable, rollable, or other retractable designs will emerge.


C SEED tri-fold TV

 

For now, the Porsche Design and C SEED tri-fold TV is a showcase for the high-end market, not a product for the average consumer. Most households are still using 65- to 85-inch TVs, which aren't large enough to create a pressing need for stowable designs. However, the trend toward 100-inch screens is undeniable. With giant screens comes the need for storage, and it may only be a matter of time before foldable designs move from the realm of luxury to the mainstream stage.

 

C SEED tri-fold TV
Back to blog

Related Posts

  • _{region} ( _{language} )

    • _{area}

    _{region}
    _{language}