Television sets have come a long way since the days of bulky CRTs. 4K and 8K smart TVs are now common household appliances, and display technology has advanced to the point where QD-OLED panels have started rolling out. Interestingly, some short-throw laser are even making such TVs seem random. Amid all this transformation, the way we consume visual media at home has altered very little. Frustrating accessories and breaks hinder the flow of entertainment.
We still rely on additional soundbars or external speakers, walk up to the fridge to grab a can of beer, and remain surrounded by charging cables for smartphones et al. But what if all this comes together? Imagine the convenience of a little coffee table that is actually a rolling robot with a retracting top, which can double as a wireless charging pad. Right below it hides a tiny refrigerator inside, while its base has a speaker system to turn your space into a theatre. I see couch potatoes everywhere!
Designer:
Ideally dubbed Come Together, it’s positioned as a premium accessory for homes with high-end TVs. Of course, convenience in consuming media on TV is the primary objective, but with its robotic inclination, this product visions to lower the psychological barrier in homes against adopting robots for in-home care and entertainment. Now that the intention of the product is knocked out of the park, we can dive down into the details that make this render worth Samsung’s image.
Before I began to understand Come Together, I for an instant mistook it for a projector with pistons. Only to realize that what I saw as pistons are cold beverage cans, which can be easily stored within. Shaped like a tower with a cradle base, this accessory is divided into three parts: the table top, fridge, and the sound system base. When you want, the tabletop retracts and reveals the fridge, which can store five beer cans. The multi-purpose top can double as a Qi2 wireless charging pad. The table itself rolls back and forth – from one couch to another – on its wheel base, which features a spatial sound system, a QVGA 3D ToF camera for spatial awareness, and a driving mechanism for hands-free movement.
Not only to move the beer around, Come Together maps the room environment so it can autonomously move around to deliver the best possible spatial audio experience based on the user’s location. This movable base is inspired by the navigation technology perfected in robotic vacuum cleaners and is also used by Come Together to roll back to its charging dock when needed. When it’s charging, the top surface retracts back close, can function as a digital clock, and also displays the refrigerator’s temperature.
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