Back in June, I’d said in a post highlighting a sale on the 2024 version of the 50″ The Frame, “Don’t bother with the 55″ or 65″ The Frame at this point in time. They’re on sale right now, but not for the best sale prices I’ve seen, or even that close.”
Good news for you. If you badly wanted those extra five inches, the 55″ The Frame is back on sale for $998. That’s $500 off its retail price. Yippee, right? Eh. Ever since early April, its street price has hovered no higher than $1,200, rather than its full retail price of $1,450.
You know what else is about that price? The Samsung The Frame 55″, 2025 version. It may not be on sale, but its normal selling price is $1,298. There’s nothing wrong with the 2024 version, but why would you want to saddle yourself with last year’s model to save $98?
Even at $998, The Frame (2024 Model) makes a scant case for itself. Sure, it’s $300 cheaper than the current version, and that makes it worthwhile. But only just.
tv as art
I’ve seen this $998 sale price for the 2024 The Frame 55″. It almost certainly won’t be the last time we’ve seen it, so although I expect the price to rebound to $1,200 or so after this deal ends, I’d bet that this deal will return again and again, like apartment ants and Transformers sequels.
The Frame’s still, at its heart, a 4K TV. It plays movies and television shows and murder documentaries just fine. But you’d choose The Frame for two reasons. One, when it’s off and idle, it looks like a metal-framed print hanging on your wall, a picture frame with a digital picture, which a lot of people (me included) think is more attractive than a regular TV.
Two, you can choose what digital art you want displayed on the TV when you’re not watching a show or movie. There are “3,500 curated artworks from more than 800 artists and 70 world-class galleries and museums,” according to Samsung, and you can change the picture as often as you like.
If there’s a downside, it’s that you have to subscribe to the Samsung Art Store. It’ll cost you $5 per month or $50 per year, if you sign up for an annual plan.
If the 2024 model is on sale, then go ahead and save the $300. Use it to subscribe to the Art Store. But when it inevitably rebounds to its street price, skip it and go for the 2025 model.
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