Thursday, February 1, 2007

Have you hesitated to upgrade to a wall-mounted flat-screen TV because you can't bear to hack a hole in your perfectly painted walls? You are not alone, and the design team at Crate and Barrel has come up with a TV stand that eliminates drilling.

The Loop Media Center, combining a plasma panel ($249) and matching media stand ($349), debuted early last month. Both pieces are made of solid oak with an espresso stain. The plasma panel holds up to a 50-inch TV, and four recessed cubbies stash 48 DVDs. The stand below fits the rest of the various media components.

"The panel offered a way for consumers to mount their flat-panel TVs, especially those worried that the walls would fall down or renters afraid the landlord wouldn't want them to tear into a wall," says Bette Kahn, a spokeswoman for Crate and Barrel.

It tapped into a need. The Loop Media Center has already made the list of the company's best-selling items for 2007, Kahn says. Now, if only the universal mounting bracket were included.

Jura Koncius