A TV GLOSSARY

This is the time of year when many get very interested in buying a new TV set.   Unlike it was in the past when your main decision was the size of the screen, today there is a dizzying array of options.  Many are confusing.  Let’s try to cut through the sales pitch.

First of all you should decide on the screen size.  The prices of very large screens have plummeted over the last few years so a 55” or 65” set is not out of the price range for many.  While size might matter, getting a screen too large for the room is not a good idea.  A good rule of thumb might help.  If you can see individual pixels on the screen, you are much too close.  If you can’t move back far enough so you can’t distinguish individual pixels, the screen to too big or the room too small. 

                                                                                                        

Many models, no matter the size, will be marketed as a “Smart TV.”  This moniker is used to indicate that the TV has built in capacity to connect to the internet.  This enables you to watch content from Netflix, Hulu, Amazon Prime and other online services without the need for a separate device.  It is convenient to have all of this built in, but if you already have a newer Blu-Ray player you may already have all you need.  So shop wisely and don’t pay for something you already have.

There is a lot of buzz about 4K TV’s.   These sets have about 4X the resolution of a standard 1080 HD set.  The larger the screen the more you will see the difference.  If you are buying a set 32 inches or less, it is doubtful that your eyes will see the difference.  Of course if you want to stay with the latest, it is too late to buy a 4K set since 8K Ultra High Def is also now available, albeit on a limited basis.  4K content is becoming more available so if you are going to keep your set for five years or more, the 4K option may be wise.

The actual picture on these sets is displayed using a variety of technologies.  One of the first display technology was Plasma.  There are very few Plasma set still made.  They consume a lot of energy, are very heavy and soon will be obsolete.  Most sets of all sizes use LED technology.  Even the LED sets have two different ways that the screen is backlighted. Some use CFL lights and others use LEDs.   The LED light is more even and a better choice.  You will also be faced with deciding on the “refresh rate” of the screen.  The refresh relates to how many times per second the picture is updated.  If you watch a lot of movies and sports be sure to get a set with a refresh rate of at least 120 Hz.  Even better is 240 Hz. If it is not too pricey.

Finally you will see some newer sets with OLED technology. OLED stands for Organic Light Emitting Diodes.  You will not find them in the Organic Produce section of the local Kroger and you are not going to be healthier if you buy one.  OLED sets use LEDs to generate the picture.  There is no back light so the colors are vivid and the blacks solid.  The OLED technology most likely will be the de facto standard very soon. 

Digital TV technology is a moving target. In fact plans are already underway at the FCC to change the digital broadcast channels.  Remember the late 90’s and early 2000s?   Hope you kept that DTV converter box.

A New Woman in My Life

A while back I wrote about Amazon’s Echo and how I thought it would be the beginning of the introduction of many useful digital assistance devices.  When I last wrote about it, my reporting was based on reading and real time evaluation using a friend’s device.  As of last week the Echo has moved into the Dominic household and is rapidly developing a long term presence.

Echo is hard to describe since it does so much.  It is a music player, personal assistant, home automation hub, and much more.  As I said in my earlier reviews, it is as close to the computer aboard the Star Ship Enterprise as you can get for less than 200 bucks.

The cylindrical device measures about 10 inches high or about the size of a can of tennis balls.  All of the interactions with the Echo are done with voice commands.  The Echo connects via your home Wi-Fi to the Internet and also to various devices in your home.

Since she came to live with us (it is a she and her name is Alexa) she has become a very helpful member of the family.  I have programmed her to control lights and heat. So just by saying, “Alexa, turn on my office heat,” the electric heater in my basement home office goes on. Because it is hands free and always listening for commands, kitchen chores are made easier.  For instance, if you are in the middle of a recipe and find yourself with sticky hands and forgetful of how many ounces are in a pint, just ask Alexa.  There is no typing on a keyboard and no tablet to touch. 

Perhaps one of the most useful, albeit mundane, features is the shopping list app.  Adding items to your list is as easy as saying “Alexa, add butter to my shopping list.”  The list is sent to designated mobile phones, in this case my phone and my wife’s phone.  So when either of us are at the store we have an accurate list of needed items.  Once either of us deletes the item from the list, it is deleted from the other’s phone.

You can ask Alexa to play a specific radio station or music from a specific artist.  She will find the latest news broadcasts, give you weather and even look at your calendar and report what you have scheduled for any day.  If you tell her to schedule a meeting, she will add it to your calendar or tell you if that time and date are already taken.

I am still finding things that she can do and Amazon promises to continually upgrade her capabilities.  So it looks like we now have another “woman” in the house but I don’t think my wife will mind.  After all, she invited her.  Alexa was my birthday gift.

The World Just Got Easier to Understand

Science Fiction literature has often turned out to be much more than fiction.  After all, it was Arthur C. Clarke who predicted the deployment of communication satellites long before some scientists worked out the physics and others said it could not be done.  More recently we are still waiting for the food replicator from the Starship Enterprise but anyone who has experienced virtual reality goggles might be thinking the first commercially available “holodeck” can’t be far off.

When I recently discovered a new service provided by Skype my thoughts returned to the Star Trek stories that featured a computer that could universally communicate with any alien form regardless of language.  It was a universal translator.

Skype’s Translator is not universal nor perfect but it sure is a great start.  Translator is available free for those using Skype on computers and devices using Windows 8 versions or above and some Apple products.  The latter do not fully support this Microsoft product.  My tests indicate that those using Apple devices might want to wait a while before trying Translate.

To use Translate, the user signs on to Skype and places a video call.  Before connecting you must select what language you will speak and what language the party you are calling speaks.  When connected, you speak your language (in my case English) and the party you called speaks theirs. During the call you will hear a computer generated voice and see captions in English on your side of the conversation and your friend will hear and see the conversation in their language.   As of this writing, Translate works with English, French, German, Italian, Portuguese and two dialects of Chinese.

I tried the English / French version and was impressed.   For sure it is not suitable for very important discussions or any legal proceedings, but is does a good job of translating simple conversations.  It helps to refrain from using jargon and/or idioms in your conversations and you should speak clearly.  Keep the background noise to a minimum. Some reviewers gave it low marks when using the Chinese option.

For those who want to use the Skype Text Chat service the number of supported languages increases to about 50.  Some Microsoft engineer with a good sense of humor even included Klingon as one of the languages.  Again, you type in English and your correspondent sees the message in one of fifty languages currently supported.

I am sure that in a few years this service will look primitive but right now I find it exciting and potentially very useful.

How Did I Do?

Back from hiatus...

Last year, as in years past, I made some predictions about some of the technologies and related services that I thought would take center stage during 2015.  It may not have been a good idea, but I promised a review of my prognostications at the end of the year.  I may have missed my deadline by about a week, but, as promised, here is a report

I predicted that the GoPro and lookalikes would become very popular.  I don’t think things turned out like I thought. For sure the GoPro and high quality standalone small video cameras continue to be popular but it was really video taken with smartphones that came of age during 2015.  Unfortunately, the video captured was not always video we wanted to see.  Nevertheless the ubiquitous “eyes” enabled by phones allowed us to see some very disturbing events.

Several police confrontations were captured by citizens that allowed those in authority to see what really took place.  Some pundits opine that the mere presence of video cameras at a tense situation make all involved much more civil.  I am not sure that this is the case, but for sure these video have had a significant impact. 

Speaking of cameras, the cameras now available on smartphones are nothing short of extraordinary in picture quality.  I received a photo from a friend last week measuring almost one by three feet taken last summer on one of our bike rides.   The color, resolution and detail are awesome.  The photo was taken with an iPhone.  For other than the serious amateur or professional photographer, the need for a standalone camera no longer exists.

I also predicted you would be able to keep an eye on your home and loved ones more completely and inexpensively with several inexpensive automated cameras, sensors, door locks, HVAC controls and intrusion alarms.  I think I got this one right.  A walk through Home Depot or Lowes will provide a look at some really cool devices.  There are even Wi-Fi enabled LED light bulbs that can be controlled with your smartphone.  Door locks with cameras are available to allow you to see who is at your door and allow entry even if you are miles away at work.

I decided not to take out that digital crystal ball this year.  New technologies and devices are being developed and coming to market so quickly that any predictions seem, at best, about as reliable as a dart board.  So instead of predicting I will try to keep you abreast of all things digital throughout this year.  Happy (belated) 2016!