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The falling price of a TV set

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121–130 of 211 posts

Re: The falling price of a TV set

#121
post #104

Ok here's a question: why do I care? Watching TV has always been an experience with ads in it. Netflix is going to know what I watch no matter what device I use. In fact, my TV is probably the most private way for me to watch a streaming service since it knows basically nothing else about me. So I got a beautiful TV for an affordable price and the manufacturer made some more money on ads in a way that I have not noti…

Netflix is going to know what I watch no matter what device I use

Sure, Netflix is going to know what you watch on Netflix, but do you really Roku and Sony to know too?

my TV is probably the most private way for me to watch a streaming service since it knows basically nothing else about me

It may know your email address from your Netflix login when you log in to Netflix from your TV, your TV could send its serial number, Netflix could sell your identity to the TV maker.

Or if you use an app to set up your TV, they could get your identity from that.

Or, worst case, they can probably figure out who you are from your IP address.

Re: The falling price of a TV set

#122

He mentioned cars. Can't wait until personalized ads show up in cars.. "visit McDonald's drivethrough in 0.5 miles, buy your favorite, the McRib(TM), and get a free drink with code xyz! Only 2 minute detour and the drivethrough currently has 2 cars in it!". And it will have user profiles and knows the driver's gender, etc, and shopping preferences. Child seat fitted since 2 months but weight sensor suggests no child…

Doesn't this already exist in Google Maps and/or Waze?

Re: The falling price of a TV set

#123
post #83

If you look at a chart of TV prices over 50-80 years, this has always been a trend [1]. Institutes using this as an argument for declining poverty are missing the point that while most goods have gone down in cost over the years, services (childcare) and things of value (education) have gone up substantially [2]. [1]: http://www.businessinsider.com/chart-of-the-day-the-incredib... [2]: Elizabeth Warren's classic "Twi…

But how much cheaper is it to learn a profitable skill? In the 1980s I’d have had a much harder time learning to code. I learned essentially for free. A traditional, hand holding education is more expensive, but information is virtually free.

I learned to code well enough to get a job for free in the '90s and it was certainly much, much easier than it would be now.

Re: The falling price of a TV set

#124
It's also why Amazon/Apple/Google/Roku/etc. basically gives away their beachhead-building boxes that are launching-points for their content platforms and integrations as cheaply as inkjet printers or razor handles. It's "razor blade" economics of a near-zero marginal unit-cost service bought on a subscription-basis, and analytics resold.

Re: The falling price of a TV set

#125
post #54
post #47

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Wait until these companies partner with Comcast to get default access to the ever present Xfinity public hotspot. Sure you might deny it privileged to your network but for a profit share I might let it access mine.

I guess alternately you could grant it access to your wifi and block all its traffic.

How does one block the traffic?

Re: The falling price of a TV set

#126
post #108
post #83

Earlier quoted context omitted.

But how much cheaper is it to learn a profitable skill? In the 1980s I’d have had a much harder time learning to code. I learned essentially for free. A traditional, hand holding education is more expensive, but information is virtually free.

The problem today isn't access to information, it's access to time and focus. Because wages are so low and basic costs so high, it is very difficult for people who didn't manage to stay on the 1st-class career track to make way for development without jeopardizing their health, well-being, or job in the immediate future.

And yet most of those people have their consent manufactured, buying into scapegoating of slaves even worse off than them (homeless, foreigners, minorities, etc.), vote against their own interests and believe that socialism and welfare for anyone other than the very rich is as repugnant as pedophilia.

Re: The falling price of a TV set

#127

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Assuming the chipset support jack restasking (most don't).

It's unlikely that a basic Bluetooth speaker would even have an ADC to switch to, not to mention speakers without Chromecast-like streaming capabilities probably only have some tiny real-time operating system.

You only need one bit of digital input and oversampling to make for a pretty good ADC.

Re: The falling price of a TV set

#128
post #100
post #83

Earlier quoted context omitted.

But how much cheaper is it to learn a profitable skill? In the 1980s I’d have had a much harder time learning to code. I learned essentially for free. A traditional, hand holding education is more expensive, but information is virtually free.

You picked one skill -- computer programming -- which just happens to be the one the internet is built on. It should come as no surprise that the internet is a great place to learn that for free. The further you get from that, the worse teacher the internet is. There are many skills I've learned which are hard to find information about online, and a few which don't seem to exist on the internet at all. Not every prof…

> There are many skills I've learned which are hard to find information about online, and a few which don't seem to exist on the internet at all.

Do you have any examples? Sounds like an opportunity.

Re: The falling price of a TV set

#129
the article doesn't even make sense, 43" for 500USD was not cheap in 2016, I was furbishing new apartment and paid 500EUR for 55" 4K TV in expensive Europe, the article is not specific to US, prices of TV and consumer electronics are falling everywhere in world

Re: The falling price of a TV set

#130
post #99

As soon as I read the title, I knew the answer. It's because you can no longer buy a "TV set". What you can buy is yet another sort of snooping device, which happens to show TV. > But the most interesting and telling reason for why TVs are now so cheap is because TV manufacturers have found a new revenue stream: advertising. If you buy a new TV today, you’re most likely buying a “smart” TV with software from either t…

you can use TV just as display, that's my primary use of TV, it's just hooked to HDMI cable from laptop, rarely playing some Netflix/Youtube videos to children

you can use whatever is your prefered Android or STB box without ads, just hook it to HDMI and you are done, TV will next time automatically start with selected HDMI output and you will see nothing preinstalled by manufacturer

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