I'm sort of irritated by the assumptions they make about my tastes, and the way I spend my time. Yes, a lot of the things they can stream into people's homes, or beam down onto a satellite dish, are extraordinarily popular and well-produced. That doesn't mean they interest me in the slightest. I suppose that most people's circumstances are such that it makes sense to have one or more of these streaming contracts on the go, so that the kids will be kept amused, or the adults, after a tiring day, can relax in front of their big TV screens and enjoy several hours of glitzy, eye-popping entertainment. I'm not mocking that one bit. If it suits, go for it. But it doesn't suit me. I couldn't give a monkey's for sport (any kind), or entertainment shows, or most drama. I want to be informed. So I want to see interesting programmes on art, history and science. So far as television is concerned, such programming is sparsely represented. Most nights, I do look up what's on, only to find that there's nothing that grabs me. (Films? Yes, I certainly dip into those, but a friend regularly screens the latest blockbusters on her giant TV, and I get to see them that way)
In any case, I can't stream anything. I haven't got an Internet-capable TV. I'm still using the TV Mum and Dad got in 2008, which I inherited the following year. Here it is.
It's a 32-inch (80cm diagonal) Samsung, and a good device in its day. It's pleasant to look at, sounds fine, and is not in the way. I like the three-level table it stands on, which I think was actually for an earlier Sony TV that my parents had. The VHS recorder has gone, but a very basic Sony DVD player is still connected, as is the Sky box, a relic of when Dad subscribed heavily to Sky in order to get programmes on golf and snooker., something I quickly stopped when I inherited the house. Now it's a kind of Freeview box, using the old Sky satellite dish on my roof. I seem to be switching to that dish more and more, as terrestrial broadcasts via the ordinary aerial get ever more iffy. But all I watch, if I watch at all, are mainstream programmes on - mainly - BBC 2 and BBC 4.
The picture on my ancient TV still has good colour, but it isn't high-definition. The TFT LCD screen resolution is 1,360 x 768 pixels = 1,044,480. In present-day parlance I think it would be called '1K', when 4K is becoming normal, and 8K not so outlandish as it once was. In fact the '3K' screen on my Microsoft Surface Book laptop gives me a better picture - and a laptop screen close up looks the same size as a 32-inch TV screen across the room:
I'd go further, and say that if I accidentally damaged my old TV, or it stopped working, I could easily manage with just the laptop screen. Particularly as I hardly ever watch any TV, except the occasional bit of catch-up. And there's nobody else in the house who might want to share the screen with me.
Back to my old TV. There are various sockets on the back, but most are redundant nowadays, and there's nary a USB socket. So sorry, Netflix and Amazon and BT and whoever else wants to stream content to me for an 'affordable' monthly subscription. I can't sign up yet.
And I intend to keep it that way for as long as possible. I completely agree that the monster-sized screens on modern TVs are superb, a real treat for the eyes. Stunning clarity; amazingly gorgeous colours. I love them. I drool over them when in John Lewis.
And prices are coming down. I was in John Lewis a few days back and could have picked up a very nice HD Sony TV in a 'Black Friday' deal for just £254. That's affordable, were I needing a replacement TV of the same size as the one I have. I didn't buy, as I'd just spent about the same money on something else - as will be related in a post coming up - and besides, if spending any money on this, I'd definitely want a bigger screen.
But it's not simply about what a new TV might cost. It's the monthly subscriptions, payable forever afterwards. I don't want to get into that. It would be a drag on my ability to save up for things I really do want.
So, for the foreseeable future, they can bombard me with as many deals as they like, I'm not playing.
So how do I get my news, weather, and all manner of programming, podcasts, articles and information? My DAB radio! Supplemented by video clips on my laptop or phone. I listen to that lot instead. I can then get on with something else while I listen, and I have plenty to get on with. Or just close my eyes and relax.
