Televisions are
getting wider and thinner, their edges shrinking to make room for displays that
pack in more and more pixels.
But the real evolution
of the TV set isn't taking place with the glossy hardware. It's happening
inside.
Major TV manufacturers,
including Sharp, Sony, Samsung, LG and Panasonic, announced their latest
television sets this week at the Consumer Electronics Show here. They all had
variations on the same splashy hardware features that were previewed last year
-- Ultra HD and OLED screens, more inches (60, 85, 110) -- but now they're
closer to being available on consumer products.
However, it's the
smaller, tablet-inspired features that could end up being more enticing to
average consumers. These include improved software interfaces, Internet
connectivity and social integration, tablet and smartphone pairing, apps and
more options for content sources other than cable.
The new Ultra HD 4K
screens have four times the number of pixels as standard High Definition TVs.
On its own, Ultra HD isn't a compelling reason to upgrade unless you are a
video buff, especially since you would have to sit extra close to the set or
have an enormous TV to notice the difference between 4K and a lower-resolution
screen.
Price tags are still sky
high for these top-of-the-line TVs. LG said its 55-inch OLED HD TV -- OLED
stands for organic light-emitting diode, a technology that provides a crisper
picture than most other displays -- will cost $12,000 when it arrives in the
U.S. in March.
There's also a very
limited amount of content in the new pixel-heavy Ultra HD format, though more
will likely be churned out in the coming years.
More in demand now are
features for the growing number of users who want to watch TV on all their
screens, big and small, and pull from a large selection of content options, not
just the cable feed and their DVR.
These are some of the
popular new software features from this year's crop of televisions at CES. Many
of these new options are already available with less expensive set-top boxes
and game consoles that can be paired with your existing TV:
Smartphone-like interfaces
We spend so much time
swiping around intuitive smartphone interfaces that navigating through TV menus
feels like a harsh trip back in time. Manufacturers are making big efforts to
update their user interfaces to be more intuitive. Some models are even running
the Android-based Google TV platform, which aims to simplify channel browsing.
Samsung showed a
revamped, busy interface called the Smart Hub that will appear on its next
generation of smart TVs. It is divided into five sections for live TV and
recommendations, streaming content, media stored on the computer, social
features and apps.
One new feature
retailers will love is T-Commerce, which will serve up shopping information for
the products and outfits you see in your regular TV shows. The new Panasonic
DT60 set has a customizable home screen and voice commands.
Streaming content and recommendations
In 2013, having hundreds
of mediocre channels to choose from isn't enough. And DVRs are limited in their
own right. These days people want the option to stream content and order video
on demand from Amazon, Netflix, Apple and other sources.
Smart TVs are adding
support for these Web-based services. For example, Samsung is adding a way to
search multiple content sources at once, similar to Matcha.com and
CanIStream.it.
There's also been a lot
of buzz at CES about TVs that offer tailored recommendations. Some feature built-in
"assistants" that track your viewing habits and then tell you what
other shows you might also like to watch, much like Netflix does with its
delightfully odd categories.
Death of the boring remote
The Channel Up and Down
buttons aren't much use when you're bopping between Facebook, HBO, Amazon and
photos of your last vacation. TV makers are adding new ways to navigate between
these, including gestures and voice control. It's a little bit Wii, a little
bit Siri. TV makers also are making apps that can turn tablets and smartphones
into remote controls for your set.
LG's latest Magic
Remote, announced on Monday, acts like a mouse, letting you navigate a pointer
around the TV screen by moving the remote. It supports voice-recognition
commands and lets you switch channels by waving the remote around to spell out
numbers.
Samsung's televisions
also add more gesture controls so you can zoom in and out on photographs or
swipe through the many panes of its new interface.
More screens
One giant screen isn't
enough for many modern viewers.
Smartphones and tablets
have become popular as second-screen devices for people who multitask while
flipping channels. Just open Twitter during any major televised sporting event
to see how people are using a second screen to share commentary about the
action.
Viewers want the option
to start an episode of "The Vampire Diaries" on the big TV in the
living room and finish it in bed on a tablet. Services such as Netflix and
Amazon are already multiscreen, offering streaming video on mobile devices,
computers and even your TV through devices such as Xbox and Apple TV. Now smart
TVs are adding support for these streaming services plus features that lets
your tablet show you a mirror of what's on your TV -- sometimes alongside your
social networks.
Sony's latest KDL-R550A
sets and Panasonic's DT60 have integrated near-field communications (NFC) that
allow you to tap your NFC-enabled smartphone or tablet (no Apple products have
NFC) to mirror what's on the set or bring up related social content.
An upgrading alternative
Smart TVs are expensive,
so Samsung has come up with an interesting product to let you upgrade your
existing TV without buying a new model. (Cleverly, it doubles as a way to make
money from TV buyers between new models.) The Evolution Kit is a black box on
the back of a Samsung smart TV that you can replace to upgrade the TV's
software and some specifications.
The company didn't
announce a price for the upgrade module, which was first announced at last
year's CES, but says it will be available early this year. The box can update
your software to add the newest features and improve your processors for a
speedier TV experience. But it can't upgrade the resolution of your screen.
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