TV of tomorrow

Who has still a CRT (Cathode Ray Tube) television at home today ??? I’m sure that majority of you, like me, have a plasma or LCD television and the luckiest ones have a 3D TV !!! Now my next question is not about “do I have to change my TV ?”, it is about “how will be the TV of the future ?”.

I will try to answer to this question because depending of the answer, I may wait or not to change my TV. I imagine something like in the movie “total recall” (1990) directed by Paul Verhoeven with Arnold Schwarzenegger and Sharon Stone. If you watched it, you may remember the scene when Arnold was watching the TV which was integrated in the window of his home. So it will be:

cordless with internet,
integrated totally in the decoration of our home
and without the need of a remote control.

All professionals and companies agree that the next generation will have internet, meaning that we will not be limited to the programs of the channels, we will be able to choose at any moment to surf and select other programs available on the web. Something like Google TV or Apple TV offer already this possibility. Both are a little box connected on our TV which allows us to surf on the web so we can look for a video on youtube, buy and download a movie… everything we can do from our computer, we can do from our TV.

With the technology like OLED (Organic Light Emitting Diode), TV will gain in quality, much better than the actual TVs and in thickness, it will be thinner so by consequence, lighter. The big problem is that the price is quite expensive so not everyone can buy one but we may expect that it will fall down within 2 years because Samsung plans to start a massive production in 2012.

oled

With the technology like the WIFI, cables won’t be anymore a nightmare including the alimentation one although so many waves in the air may not be good for our health !!! About the alimentation, a chinese company Haier sells already this kind of TV. The electronic current doesn’t go via the normal cable but via 2 terminals which exchange energy by electromagnetic resonance.

A window as a TV, may you think it is possible ? Imagine that when you buy your house, all windows also acts as TV. Well companies like Agath and Cybertecture are working something similar. In fact, it is about an interactive mirror acting as a mirror but also as a TV so meanwhile you are dressing, you can watch your favorite program, take a look on the below video to get an idea.

The remote control will be an obsolete tool because with the technology of speech and movement recognition like Kinect of Microsoft, we will be able soon to select and to program the TV with only our fingers, something very practical and convenient.

And to end, the 3D. Actually this technology has a lot of disadvantages than advantages. OK it is very great to watch the movie “avatar” (2009) from James Cameron in 3D at home but each spectator needs special glasses and its cost is still expensive for a family with 2 children for example. The best, of course, is without glasses but for the moment, the only person who sits in front of the screen can enjoy a 3D movie, the others beside him can’t but soon, everything will be possible !!!

I think that I will wait a little more before to change my plasma TV. Of course, you can tell me that with this idea, I can wait indefinitely. My point is to wait for the good moment because I don’t want to buy a new one and 3 months later, a better one is coming out in the market, after all, each of us has his own definition of the good moment as the good opportunities.

December 9, 2010