The CES technology show is online-only this year instead of in its usual home of Las Vegas, but that hasn't stopped tech brands from showing off innovative new concepts.

As it often does, LG is preparing to reveal a new type of display. Instead of rollable or curved TV screens, the focus for 2021 is on transparent OLED displays.

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The company has created a 55-inch OLED screen that is 40 percent transparent. Controlled with a touchscreen display at its base, LG says how the screen could be fitted in restaurants between customers and the kitchen or counter.

That way, diners can browse a menu on the display while still seeing the kitchen, or the rest of the restaurant, behind it. LG's images show how the screen could be fitted to the bar of a sushi restaurant, rising into place then disappearing when not required. LG is a forerunner when it comes to OLED technology, which appears in its flagship televisions; its flexible nature means it is also used by LG's new rollable television, the Signature OLED TV RX.

LG also suggests how the new screen could be fitted to the end of a bed, where it can be viewed as a normal TV but is transparent when not used so doesn't block the rest of the bedroom.

The CES technology show is taking place online in January instead of in Las Vegas CES / Twitter

As well as turning transparent when not in use, the screen can also be fully or partially lowered into the bed frame, with the latter state turning the TV into a smart display, like LG's rollable TVs shown off at previous CES events.

The screen has what LG calls Cinematic Sound OLED, which consists of speakers built into the body and means no need for a sound bar or other external speakers. Although no doubt expensive for home use, we can imagine such a TV appearing in the bedrooms of an upmarket hotel.

"Transparent OLED is a technology that maximizes the advantages of OLED and can be used in various places in our daily lives, from stores, shopping malls, and architectural interiors to autonomous vehicles, subway trains, and aircraft," said LG's Jong-sun Park. He added: "It will grow into a next-generation display that can change the existing display paradigm."

LG will also use the CES show to debut its new QNED Mini LED television technology, which uses tens of thousands of tiny lights to illuminate TV screens and create improved contrast levels and HDR images. Last year, LG used the CES show to reveal flexible displays designed to replace the windows of an airplane cabin.

LG OLED55BXPUA Alexa Built-In BX 55" 4K Smart OLED TV (2020)

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Check out The GearBrain, our smart home compatibility checker to see other compatible products that work with LG OLED TVs and smart appliances.

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