Technology (Televisions, Computers... etc.)

I can’t wait to get a new TV. I think by the next time I move, 4K OLED will be mature enough that it will be affordable, and I can replace my cheap 32" Samsung LED-backlit LCD. The black levels are terrible.

Handman said:

So how 'bout that 8K?

Don’t you already need to sit like 5’ from a 100" screen to differentiate 4K from 1080P?

I dunno. I’m usually a Luddite, the last on the block, etc. I’ve got no cell phone, got DSL via the landline, and so on.

But the crazy display specs coming down the pipe don’t sound so ridiculous to me. Here’s my logic on that: as consumer tech improves, at some point the technology level will be reached where the quality is SO good that there’s simply no room for improvement. And this is a good thing. It then becomes entirely about content and convenience.

I feel like audio storage hit that point with the CD. The problem of storing stereo sound was solved outright, nothing more was needed. Now, there was an attempt to do multichannel via DVD-A and that was technically a remaining problem that CD’s did not address, but the market simply did not care. It then became about content and convenience. The SACD market was an attempt to sell better-mastered content, but was slathered in audiophile snake oil. Better mastering was largely a market bust as well, although it did help fuel the niche vinyl resurgence. Convenience was tackled via digital downloads, streaming, etc, and here we are today, and CD-quality is still the reference quality decades later, even if the format itself is in decline.

Displays are another matter. There are multiple defined market purposes: media playback, static display, gaming, and they each have their own requirements. 8K means pixels disappear even with your eyeball pressed against a ginormous display. Completely unnecessary for media playback and gaming, but still could have some value for static displays IMO. 120Hz and variable refresh rates work for gaming but not much else. Wider color gamut helps everywhere, if only a bit. So, yeah, these are corner cases to be sure, but they do actually address certain markets. HDMI 2.1 will probably mark the point where transmitting video information hits that same point CD audio hit. Then it’s about content and convenience. Oh, and there will surely be another stab at 3D some years down the line, and the market will continue to not care. See? Luddite.

That’s not to say there won’t continue to be tech improvements, they’ll just be elsewhere. On the playback side, speaker tech continues to evolve, and so will displays. But in both cases it’d be about better reproducing the signal they receive, not about processing an entirely new kind of signal. I know I don’t want to buy any new displays until that motion blur problem is well and truly solved, or at least significantly better than it is on today’s OLEDs. Yeah, I’m one of those. Off my lawn!

Handman said:

CHEWBAKAspelledwrong said:

I can’t wait to get a new TV. I think by the next time I move, 4K OLED will be mature enough that it will be affordable, and I can replace my cheap 32" Samsung LED-backlit LCD. The black levels are terrible.

LED LCDs are something I could never stand. I just use it for my computer monitor. Would never buy an expensive LCD.

I mean they’re no worse than florescent backlit models.

Do have an OLED then? Or still a plasma holdout?

I have a question. I have an AV receiver and all devices go through it via HDMI. When I watch anything from my computer through the receiver to my TV, it creates lag. From AV settings I’ve put it as “direct”. If I use some basic encoding like PL, the delay is about 8 ms. If I use pure direct (the sound comes exactly as it should) the delay goes to 20 ms. Any idea what’s creating the lag and how to get rid of it?

CatBus said:

I dunno. I’m usually a Luddite, the last on the block, etc. I’ve got no cell phone, got DSL via the landline, and so on.

But the crazy display specs coming down the pipe don’t sound so ridiculous to me. Here’s my logic on that: as consumer tech improves, at some point the technology level will be reached where the quality is SO good that there’s simply no room for improvement. And this is a good thing. It then becomes entirely about content and convenience.

I feel like audio storage hit that point with the CD. The problem of storing stereo sound was solved outright, nothing more was needed. Now, there was an attempt to do multichannel via DVD-A and that was technically a remaining problem that CD’s did not address, but the market simply did not care. It then became about content and convenience. The SACD market was an attempt to sell better-mastered content, but was slathered in audiophile snake oil. Better mastering was largely a market bust as well, although it did help fuel the niche vinyl resurgence. Convenience was tackled via digital downloads, streaming, etc, and here we are today, and CD-quality is still the reference quality decades later, even if the format itself is in decline.

Displays are another matter. There are multiple defined market purposes: media playback, static display, gaming, and they each have their own requirements. 8K means pixels disappear even with your eyeball pressed against a ginormous display. Completely unnecessary for media playback and gaming, but still could have some value for static displays IMO. 120Hz and variable refresh rates work for gaming but not much else. Wider color gamut helps everywhere, if only a bit. So, yeah, these are corner cases to be sure, but they do actually address certain markets. HDMI 2.1 will probably mark the point where transmitting video information hits that same point CD audio hit. Then it’s about content and convenience. Oh, and there will surely be another stab at 3D some years down the line, and the market will continue to not care. See? Luddite.

That’s not to say there won’t continue to be tech improvements, they’ll just be elsewhere. On the playback side, speaker tech continues to evolve, and so will displays. But in both cases it’d be about better reproducing the signal they receive, not about processing an entirely new kind of signal. I know I don’t want to buy any new displays until that motion blur problem is well and truly solved, or at least significantly better than it is on today’s OLEDs. Yeah, I’m one of those. Off my lawn!

^ I still rock a CRT Tv and a flip phone . Luddite …pshaw . Get off MY lawn ! lol 😃