Anyone who's tried setting up a portable projector knows the drill: tilt it until the image looks square, twist the focus ring, move it three inches left, refocus, then do it all over again when you shift to another room. It's the kind of tedious calibration that makes "portable" feel like a joke.
Samsung wants AI to eliminate that entirely. The company unveiled the Freestyle+ this morning ahead of CES 2026, built around a simple idea: point it at a wall, and the device figures out the rest.
Damilare Odedina
How the AI handles what you used to do manually
The tech behind this is AI OptiScreen, a system that automatically corrects every adjustment you'd normally make by hand:
- Fixing distortion on weird surfaces: Comes with a 3D auto keystone that projects a straight image even on curtains, textured walls, or corner angles
- Staying sharp when things move: Refocuses in real time if someone bumps the table or the projector shifts
- Compensating for wall color: Analyzes the surface and adjusts so dark or patterned walls don't wash out the image
- Matching projection screens: Detects compatible screens and sizes the image to fit perfectly
It's what happens when technology stops asking you to adapt to it and starts doing the adapting itself.
Hun Lee, who oversees Samsung's display division, framed it this way: "The Freestyle+ reflects Samsung's vision to create displays that adapt naturally to how people live and move between spaces. By combining true portability with intelligent AI that optimizes both the viewing environment and the content itself, The Freestyle+ makes it easier to enjoy a consistent, high-quality experience wherever you are."
The device also brings Vision AI Companion onboard, Samsung's platform that blends an upgraded Bixby with AI services from outside partners—most likely Perplexity, based on recent deals—so you can ask questions or control content through conversation. Brightness got a boost too: 430 ISO lumens, nearly double the original Freestyle, which works fine for dimmed rooms but still won't compete with dedicated home theater setups.
But will people pay extra to skip setup?
What stands out here isn't the specs sheet. It's the approach. Samsung isn't stuffing AI into a projector just to check a box. They're using it to solve an actual problem—one that's kept portable projectors from being truly convenient.
But here's the catch: projectors from Anker and XGIMI already do auto-correction, and they cost less. Samsung hasn't announced pricing yet, but if the Freestyle+ lands too high, people might just stick with what's cheaper and good enough.
Samsung plans to show off the Freestyle+ at CES 2026 in Las Vegas next week, January 6-9, with a wider release coming in the first half of this year. How they price it will matter more than the tech itself.
What we're seeing is AI moving past the screen and into how devices work in physical spaces—quietly fixing frustrations people got used to living with. Whether enough people care to pay more for that convenience is the real test ahead.
Damilare Odedina
