Samsung's New TV Packaging Transforms Into Cardboard Cat Houses

Samsung has introduced a new type of eco-friendly cardboard packaging that will be used with some of its new television models. These boxes are designed to transform into useful pieces of furniture, the most notable being the transformation into a small cat house. Samsung will include this packaging with its 'The Frame,' 'The Serif,' and 'The Sero' TV models.

The new packaging will be used for Samsung's Lifestyle TV product family, the company first announced earlier this month. The boxes are made from corrugated cardboard, which can be 'upcycled' into other useable items using instructions included with the product. The cardboard features a dot-matrix design printed onto the material, which customers must cut into the right shapes themselves.

A manual included with the TV shows how to craft different items out of the boxes; you'll need to scan a QR code to pull it up. The packaging included with 'The Serif' TV model can be turned into a magazine rack, cat house, or shelves, according to Samsung, for things like offering your cat a space of its own or for storing the remote and some magazines near your favorite recliner.

Samsung Electronics Executive VP and Head of Product Strategy Team of Visual Display Business Kangwook Chun explained the reasoning behind the new packaging, stating:

Consumers are more likely to purchase from a brand that shares similar fundamentals and values as they do, and with our eco-packaging, we believe that we can provide our customers with a new experience that considers the environment as an important way to express themselves.

The idea of upcycling packaging isn't new — there's an entire trend dedicated to crafting packaging into useful secondary products, including everything from artwork to more practical items like storage organizers, gardening materials, and more. Samsung recently held a design contest with lifestyle magazine Dezeen for new designs that could be used with similar product packaging.