InsideTheCBC.com » Tod’s Tech Beat: Too Much TV?

Tod’s Tech Beat: Too Much TV?

I get a lot of news releases. And a lot of them are like this — some company hires a polling firm to find out that Canadians want… wait for it… more products from that company!! Amazing!
But this one from HP in particular seemed nearly laughable.

Canadians want to turn on the fun in their living rooms. A recent Ipsos Reid survey sponsored by HP Canada, suggests that Canadians want more out of their television set….
Sixty per cent of Canadians surveyed indicated that they’d like their television to do more and become what’s being called a media hub - a way to access, manage and enjoy digital photos, music, TV, videos and movies from the comfort of your couch….
HP has been working to deliver a superior and easier to use entertainment experience. We were the first PC manufacturer to offer Media Center PCs and now we offer Media Smart TVs that allow consumers to access digital content from PCs anywhere in your home.”

My own thoughts:

Yawn.
Ipsos Reid: I had no idea your soul could be bought so easily.

I mean, seriously. Maybe I’m the oddball here. But what I want out of my TV is just a nice TV that works reliably and has an easy-to-use remote control. That’s it!
I don’t want to “access, manage, and enjoy” any digital assets, photos, music backups, or anything like that.
Does anyone reading this blog really buy this study — that three out of five Canadians want a “media hub” instead of a good TV? C’mon.

In what I’m sure is a complete coincidence, Father’s Day is Sunday. And big-screen TVs are a big-purchase items. I’m sure HP wouldn’t commission some dubious survey just to get media attention, would they? Nooooooo, that just wouldn’t be ethical….

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