Since I saw Samsung’s first The Frame TV, I knew I wanted one. I don’t like the idea of a huge black rectangle in my living room; I love colorful, interesting, eye-catching designs. But for decades, TVs have gotten larger and larger, blacker and blacker, and duller and duller when turned off. The Frame gave me hope that this huge black rectangle could become as interesting when it’s idle as it is when it’s on, all while retaining an art-like glare-free aspect and consuming limited power. Still, I never bought one.
See, if I’m displaying something on a 55- or 65-inch canvas in the heart of my home, it won’t be a famous painting, an abstract drawing, or anything made by someone else. I’m not interested in that, or at least that kind of art doesn’t speak to me enough to make me want to hang it on my living room wall. No, what I’m really interested in is the “art” — and I say that with a tongue in cheek — that I’ve made. The awesome photos I’ve taken with my Pixel phones, my memories, my landscape snaps, my travels, and my life’s important events and people. But Samsung’s approach to uploading personal photos with its SmartThings app is, as far as I can tell, a big dealbreaker if you want that.