IKEA is planning to introduce furniture with built-in home entertainment systems later this year. The range includes three designs, all of which incorporate an LED TV, 2.1 sound system with wireless subwoofers, Wi-Fi for smart TV features, and DVD / Blu-Ray players. The company is planning to launch in Sweden, France, Italy, Poland, Spain, Denmark, Norway, and Portugal in the fall, with a worldwide rollout in spring 2013. The furniture is intended to hide away cables, and will come in a number of different color options.

A few specs on the system have been announced — the LED panels are full HD (suggesting 1080p) which IKEA says have a 400Hz refresh rate and come in four sizes, with four HDMI inputs, two USB ports, and support for DivX HD files. There's also extra storage, which means that your Xbox 360 and PS3 won't need to be left out.

The range, dubbed "Uppleva" (meaning experience) is designed to make your home entertainment simpler to use, with one remote to command the whole system. It's built by Chinese manufacturer TCL, a company better known in the US under the RCA brand, or as Thomson in Europe. The base model is set to cost SEK 6,500 (about $995) with a 5-year guarantee, though it's not clear what's included at this price point, or how much the full version will cost.





Thanks, Martin!