TCL and Bang & Olufsen join forces with an art TV collaboration that rivals Samsung's The Frame

Chinese TV manufacturer TCL has joined forces with luxury Danish audio brand Bang & Olufsen in a new six-year venture that will see TCL TVs with "Audio by Bang & Olufsen". While TCL is known for offering TVs across a range of budgets, these sound systems will unsurprisingly be reserved for TCL's premium offerings, starting with the NXTFRAME art TV.

This TV is TCL's answer to Samsung's wildly popular The Frame TV. Much like Samsung's interpretation of this concept, the TCL NXTFRAME will show artwork when it's left idle and features a picture frame-like bezel that can mimic a piece of art – making it an ideal TV for the interior design-conscious crowd that is put off by having a conventional unit in their carefully curated living room. 

The NXTFRAME will feature a soundbar and subwoofer that have been co-engineered by TCL and Bang & Olufsen's audio teams. These audio components will also feature BeoSonic compatibility, which will allow users to customise the sound characteristics via an app. There is no word on what sound formats are supported on this included soundbar, however, we'd expect Dolby Atmos to be included considering this is expected to be a premium product. 

TCL and B&O's partnership is set to officially begin when the NXTFRAME launches in China this week, with future premium models expected to take advantage of this collaboration. While it will remain exclusive to TCL's home country of China for now, FlatpanelsHD reports that we could see a European launch at this year's IFA convention in Berlin.

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