Friday, February 22, 2008

What Is Wrong With TV

This is both a question and a statement. We are well on the way to HD TV. The high-def DVD war has just come to an end. A large number of us have complex speaker systems on our TVs that rival that of a multiplex. But something is still wrong. I must admit I am a bit behind the curve. My 37" Sanyo is 5-6 years old. I am still watching DVDs and I have not sprung for the surround sound yet because I don't have convenient placed to put all that. But I am looking and eventually I imagine I will enter the 21st century.
But the problem is that for all the technology we do have there is still a lot we don't have. Why do I have to surf past channel's I will never, never, ever watch? Why do I have to buy a cable "package" with these channels in it? Why do I have to have a universal remote or have multiple remotes? Why is there a tangle of cords in the corner of my room?
The problem with TV is that it has lagged behind everything else in user interface. What has changed in the TV interface in the last 50 years? Nothing! I am hoping that we are on the cusp of a big change. The convergence of the computer and the TV has been brewing for 10-15 years so hopefully someone is getting ready to figure it out.
All we need is one company to innovate us into this revolution and the rest will follow. I think Apple may do it or it may be Google or HP. It is unlikely to be Dell and if you are betting on this change coming from the vicinity of Redmond you really need to put the crack pipe down and get into a rehab program. Today.
I just don't understand what is so difficult! All I need is a simple interface that I can customize. It shows me what I want to see and lets me control when and how I view the content. Can we not simply a have a screen with bay's in the back like a PC tower where we can put different components instead of having to pile up all this junk around the screen?
The biggest piece of all this is that someone has to pry the content provider's mummy-like claw off our throats and allow us to have a la cart control over what we get and pay for. Apple seems poise for this with it's Apple TV and iTunes service. I am concerned that the content providers will shy away from Apple simply from concern about one company having too much control over the industry. What would be nicest would be some kind of consortium that allowed end users to buy content from all producers using various devices and delivery methods.
Well, that is my prognostication for today. I am going to go save up for my next TV.

2 comments:

Dorina Gilmore said...

Hi Jon,
Yes, I'm waiting for the day when "ala carte" TV arrives. If only we could limit our "package" to HDTV, Food Network and Ericlee's sports channels...Oh wait, we don't have a package because we can't do that. For now our viewing is limited to kids stuff from the library and the occasional game on regular TV albeit fuzzy.
Great topic for a new blog!
Dorina

Joey Markham said...

Here's another point for you--look at Radio. Quite recently the advance of satellite radio has given listeners the ability to pick and choose what they want, as well as some nifty features (Such as pausing the radio and so on). It is only a matter of time before TV catches up to even that. =D

//Joey Markham