July 15, 2008Brother, can you spare an HDTV?Look, gang: I've always kept this blog focused on my columns and the news affairs of famous people. But consider this a rare timeout to share insight on my consumer habits. The TV in my bedroom is dying. It was a college graduation gift received during the heydays of the Reagan administration. So I went TV shopping. (Don't tell Sears the economy bites. The TV department on Sunday afternoon was hopping!) I was overwhelmed by the sea of flat-screen televisions, all set on the same channel. Row after row of this high-tech wizardry displayed images of blue water clear enough to dive into and flowers real enough to smell. (When my TV isn't snowy, it's blurry --- and that's WITH cable!) Still, I didn't want a television that looked like a piece of art -- or cost like one, either. I just wanted a TV like the 19-inch behemoth I was replacing. So I interrupted a busy Sears salesman and asked slightly indignantly, "Where are the real TVs?" He said, "Ma'am, these are the real TVs." His comment made me feel SO 1980s. He quickly peeped that I was a techno relic and dismissively added, "We have three TVs with tubes at the end of the last aisle." (Maybe it's me but I could swear he returned the indignation in the way he spat out the "with tubes" part.) I schlepped over to the three televisions "with tubes." They were bargains, because -- lo and behold -- they were "Standard Def," not "High-Def." That was Sunday. Today, I found a 19-inch Phillips flat-screen I liked. I feel like such a poseur, but the set has a 4000-1 contrast ratio and 720 pixel. Geez Louise, when did we become a nation in which you had to have an I.T. degree to buy a television? Now about that boom-box in the kitchen... |
About this blog In her signature plainspoken style, Michigan native Shanna Flowers peels away the layers and gets to the heart of the issues. No pretense. Just straightforward perspective. Shanna writes about local people whose circumstances reflect decisions made as near as City Hall or as far away as the halls of Congress. Other times, she weighs in on a topic because it is incredibly ridiculous. Or heartening. Or fascinating. Read Shanna's column three days a week, Sundays, Tuesdays and Thursdays, at roanoke.com
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Comments
[July 15, 2008 11:12 PM]
Terry BI feel your pain, I want to replace my 27 inch Magnavox purchased at "Sound Advice" in Florida in 1991 it was a HDTV of it's time.
The salesman said all TV would eventually go this route. I took my TV to a Entertainment Store in the area and the salesman said why replace what looks great.
That was two years ago keep it simple and stick with works for you.
[July 16, 2008 9:52 AM]
MichelleI think I’m turning into my parents. Several years ago, my brother and I tried to teach my parents how to use Microsoft Windows and cruise the Net. My brother gave up in disgust. I plugged along for a few more months, but I eventually gave up too. My husband purchased a cell phone for his mother a couple of years ago. After a few too many glasses of wine last Summer, she finally told us that the reason she never got our voice mail messages was because she couldn’t figure out how to retrieve her messages. She tried to get help at the Verizon retail store, but the techo geeks were laughing too hard to help her. A few months ago I was transporting my daughter and her friends to a concert, when one of them wanted to know where my adapter was so she could plug her iPod into the car’s sound system. Huh?
[July 16, 2008 12:28 PM]
Henry HaleShanna,
Everyone looked so incredulously at me around 1990 when I bought a computer and the Internet was just text based reading. My wife at the time wasn't too pleased with the price either.
However, it paid off for me with a job in IT and not feeling so behind the times, as I'm nearing 50. I got a 52" plasma TV two Christmases ago, and the first thing my friend ask was who was going to plug in all of the wires. Luckily, I can do these things myself but do feel for those of my peers who are intimidated with advancing technology as it continues to develop.
One thing the younger generation and those of us who have received knowledge in new technology need to accept is that there are those who haven't been exposed to these things and show more tolerance and patience. Those with intelligence show their true smarts when they're willing to teach.
[July 16, 2008 12:44 PM]
MattI've got a 19 inch HDTV for the dorm room, but I'm upgrading it to a 32-37 incher for next semester. It's simple stuff, if you know what you're doing.
[August 5, 2008 1:44 PM]
AmySeveral years back, while my husband and I were still pulling ourselves through school, I went shopping for a TV to replace one that had been broken in a move. Even then I was conscience that I may have looked like I had just wandered out of the woods (circa 1983) when I said that I was looking in the $100 / 19" range.
The salesguy asked what I would be using it for. I was confused and told him that I would be watching it. No no no - did I watch a lot of movies, play fast moving video games, have cable? The answer was no. I mostly tuned in for the local news with my rabbit ear antenna and indulged in the occasional episode of Law & Order. Money and time were luxuries I didn't have to spend on television. It just wasn't a priority.
He was flustered. I apparently just did not get it. He then tried to sell me an extended service plan for $30 for my $100 set.