Few other tech companies can claim such a lengthy heritage as Loewe. The German manufacturer has been with us since 1923, when Siegmund and David L. Loewe began their business making radios, two years before Peter Bang and Svend Olufsen teamed up in Jutland.
The Loewe brothers were pioneers in several respects, developing a clever way of combining functions within a triple vacuum tube for their early radios, helpfully undercutting the competition. They were also first into the new world of television, working with none other than John Logie Baird in the early 30s. Forced to emigrate to the USA by the Nazis, Siegmund eventually returned to head up the company that bore his name in 1949.
The firsts continued, and by 1961, Loewe was building one of the first video recorders pitched at the home. However, the following year Loewe died and as a result the family association ceased. Philips took over the brand, but after it bailed, the name bounced around a number of different investors before settling into new ownership in 2019.
Throughout this time, Loewe never lost its passion for electronics with a designer edge. The company’s early Danish rivals might retain the crown, but Loewe was never far behind. TV has always been an area where the company has excelled, from the first portable TV, 1963’s Loewe Optaport, to the monolith-like Art 1 television in the 80s to early flatscreens, Smart televisions and OLED screens.
For 2021, Loewe is introducing more products that reference this rich heritage of design and Germany-based manufacturing. For a couple of years at the end of the last decade, the German-born, London-based designer Bodo Sperlein was the company’s Creative Director. Sperlein oversaw several avant-garde forms, including the bild 9 TV-in-a-frame, the bild 5 TV-on-stilts, and the Bauhaus-inspired bild X, with its natural marble base.
The new bild i kicks off the company’s latest renaissance, a 4K OLED screen that’s available in three sizes, 48”, 55” and a 65” model. There’s both Dolby Vision™ and Dolby Atmos™, and accelerated access to streaming services thanks to an optimised operating system. The bild i can be paired with a trio of new speaker systems, the onomatopoeically titled klang series. Two soundbars, the klang bar i and klang bar 5, are available, along with a subwoofer.
The new TV range is augmented by a number of standalone klang speakers, the freestanding mr (multiroom) range and the s (for smart home). The former includes three different sizes and shapes, each with a glass top panel and touch screen. The klang s is available in two sizes and is billed as a smart radio for the new generation.
Dovetailing every conceivable audio into a slender countertop device, the aluminium-bodied ‘s’ models incorporate Bluetooth, mp3 over USB, internet, FM and digital radio, as well as a CD player in the klang s3, making it a worthy successor to the company’s long history of innovation and heritage. It’s rare to find high-end audio design that avoids ostentation and OTT forms in favour of old fashion quality and simplicity. Every facet of the Loewe look is sleek and discrete, from the new remote control to the integration of the sound bar. The rebirth continues.
Read more: Loewe.tv
