You can get this dual-screen TV for free in exchange for watching ads

Telly, the US-based startup, has announced a new 55-inch TV with a second screen, an integrated soundbar, and a camera. While the second screen is a one-of-a-kind feature in itself, the most interesting thing about this TV is that users can get it for free. I’m not kidding. What’s the catch then? In exchange for the TV, users must agree to watch constant ads.

Telly was founded by Ilya Pozin, the co-founder of Pluto TV, a popular ad-supported streaming service. Inspired by the success of Pluto TV, Pozin decided to offer free TV through Telly in exchange for viewers watching ads. He says in a statement, “When I co-founded Pluto TV, we created an entirely new model that offered amazing TV content to viewers for free. Now, with Telly, we are providing the actual television for free as well.”

Two screens: One for you, One for ads

Users won’t be bombarded with non-stop ads on their 55″ screens. Instead, Telly will make use of the second display for ads, and only a quarter of the screen will be occupied by them. Users can easily train their eyes to ignore this portion. However, some users may still find it slightly distracting. But hey, it’s a free TV after all!

The remaining space on the second screen—apart from the ads—can be used to display different widgets. This can include sports scores, a news ticker, weather updates, and stock prices.

However, Telly’s chief strategy officer, Dallas Lawrence, tells The Verge that ads might utilize both displays when you’re not using the TV. “When the Theatre display (top screen) is not in use, the ad unit could come to life in a fun way connecting both,” Lawrence says. “There are literally hundreds of things we are thinking about to create the most engaging ad experience ever.”  Lawrence also says that Telly is working on Telly’s rewards program that will reward users with gift cards to services like Netflix or Starbucks by engaging with on-screen polls and other content.

Telly has partnered with MNTN, a TV ad company, to sell ads for the Telly system. It’s also planning on letting users shop and order takeout or food delivery through the TV, with the company taking a percentage from each transaction.

Specifications

As for the TV’s specifications, it features a 55-inch 4K HDR panel with a secondary display and a built-in five-driver soundbar. It runs on the company’s own operating system, TellyOS. But it does not currently support third-party streaming apps like Netflix.

That is why the TV comes bundled with a free 4K Android TV dongle that you can use to watch any streaming service you want. The TV is compatible with other streaming devices, including Roku, the Amazon Fire Stick, and Apple TV. You can connect them via three HDMI inputs, or two USB inputs, while there’s also a tuner.

Moreover, the TV comes with its own proprietary voice assistant, called “Hey Telly.” Apart from this, the TV has a camera and Zoom integration for videoconferencing. And it comes with free motion-tracking fitness programs. Users can also play 40 different games and songs from popular music services. The company has, however, not yet revealed which music services it is partnering with, and neither it has provided any details about the games.

Book your FREE Telly TV

After all, if you are interested in getting this free TV from Telly, you can register for it here. However, there is a waitlist, and only the first 500,000 users will be eligible. The shipping of these TVs is slated to commence in the upcoming summer. Furthermore, please feel free to share these articles with your friends who you believe would truly benefit from this enticing offer.