I made my TV look just like The Frame for a fraction of the price

The most enduring of the many so-called lifestylesmart TVs is The Frame. First introduced by Samsung, and more recently copied and offered by competitors, The Frame sought to beautify TVs and offer an aesthetic alternative to when you weren’t actually watching TV. With an art gallery mode, matte screen, slim design, and frame that gives the TV its namesake, the unit was built to display paintings and photos when it was ‘off.’

While these TVs are popular, they come with a high price tag. Still, there are ways to embrace the qualities of The Frame even if you don’t have the specific one. Here is how to beautify your smart TVso that it stands out as an aesthetic piece of decor to display works of art.

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Mount your smart TV to the wall

Create a gallery experience at home

The first and best way to create your own Frame-adjacent smart TV experience is to mount your TV. This does a lot of things, but most importantly, it creates the sense of a work of art hanging on the wall. It’s a big component of the success of The Frame and all its immitators. In most cases, mounting your TV will create a better viewing experience, and that’s especially true when it comes to showing off paintings or photos.

Ideally, you’re able to mount your TV so that it sits flush against the wall. Many newer TVs feature slim builds, are designed to be mounted and have a low profile. The process can be a bit tedious, often requiring careful calculations and some delicate maneuvering. It’s recommended to pay for professionals to mount it when you buy a TV. If that’s no longer an option, then set aside the time and tools to properly set it up. Make sure you have someone to help you as well.

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Consider cords and devices

Hide distracting accessories

Once you’ve mounted a TV, you’re much closer to creating a more visually appealing environment. However, the issue of cord management will now be front and center. The Frame and its ilk deal with dangling cords in a variety of ways, often implementing a single, clear cable to connect from the TV to a discrete box that allows you to connect to other cables. You’ll have to figure out your own hack that is compatible with your setup, because you don’t want a bunch of cables connecting to various devices and outlets to go every which way along the wall to the floor.

Some TV manufacturers might be able to help you with specific products to help the situation; Samsung offers a One Connect Box that specifically addresses the situation, but there are clever DIY options as well. You can consider a cable raceway, and adding tape or paint to it in order to conceal them better. You can opt for cable clips or clasps that can keep wires bundled together for less mess. For the handy and ambitious, running cables through a wall might be an option. Failing all that, find a way to cleverly hide the wires with decor. The fewer distractions you have, the better the entire experience will look and feel.

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Incorporate smart lighting effects

Backlights emphasize content and set mood

A relatively inexpensive way to pretty significantly change the look and feel of watching TV can be done through backlighting. Some strip lights are specifically designed to attach to the back of your TV or backward-facing lamps cast to the wall behind the unit. Light around the TV can enhance the viewing experience, creating bias lighting that helps reduce eye strain and highlight color and contrast on the screen.

Backlighting can also better highlight what’s on the screen, including photos or paintings. Most smart lighting allows you to change the color, temperature, and brightness, with many options letting you select various patterns and combinations. The most advanced options can even mirror what’s on the screen, casting light the complements the subject matter.

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Activate any ambient or art modes

Seek settings that enhance visuals

Many new TVs, including those by Samsung, offer an Ambient Mode or something similar. This feature typically includes a collection of beautiful vistas, geometric designs, and calming settings that can be displayed as a background experience. Such a mode also significantly turns down the brightness and increases color saturation. Different TVs may have similar modes, perhaps an art mode, that arranges settings to optimize visuals.

Your TV may have paintings, designs, or other media included with these modes. If it doesn’t, however, you can attempt to showcase your own. You can connect a thumb drive to a USB port on your smart TV and access photos, videos, or works of art you wish to display. And if your TV doesn’t have specific settings to optimize this kind of content, then you can adjust settings yourself to make the screen feel less like a TV and more like an art display.

Lifestyle TVs come with a high price tag, which puts them out of reach for some consumers. However, there are ways you can create an environment that supports a similar aesthetic, creating a TV experience that isn’t just about what you’re watching, but also how you’re watching.

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FAQ

Q: What’s the best type of TV for displaying art and photos?

A matte display with anti-glare protection is popular for those looking to display paintings or other pictures on the screen, especially if it is in a room with ambient light. OLED TVs are generally better at contrast and achieving true black on screen than LED counterparts (like QLED TVs), however they may not achieve the same brightness. Consider slim design, thin bezels, and wall mounting capability when looking at the best TVs to imitate The Frame.