If you’re old enough to remember rabbit ears, you've probably told your kids how hard you had it because your old television had dials. Now LG Electronics is bringing back a whiff of those ancient days with its distinctly retro Classic TV (Model 32LN630R). The South Korean electronics firm didn't just swap out the ubiquitous black case for creamy white, the company also added real channel and volume knobs to appeal to those more interested in classic Scandinavian style rather than bleeding-edge design.
According to LG, the Classic TV harks back to the designs of the 1970s and 80s with an emphasis on simplicity and modernity, though the latter seems a bit of a contradiction. However, the maker drew the line at ditching modern flat screen technology in favor of a vintage cathode ray tube.
Instead, the HD set has a 1920 x 1080 resolution LED screen with a 178⁰ viewing angle. It’s also designed for USB and external hard drive connections, as well as Mobile High-definition Link (MHL) for connecting to a smartphone.
The Classic TV sells for 840,000 KRW (about US$750), with a free coffeemaker thrown in to celebrate the launch.
Source: LG Electronics via Endgadget
I hope this starts a 'new' trend of butting buttons on the front where we can see them. Are they really that ugly? Does it really throw off the whole look of the modern room if the TV buttons are seen?
You mean those things that MILLIONS of people, in the United States alone, are using on their old analog televisions to receive digital signals?
Or that tens of millions of people were using to receive analog signals, because they didn't have cable, less than ten years ago? Just how do you think your average reader is?
(Tongue in cheek there, not meaning to be seriously critical.) :-)
My wife always places the remote on the set or even behind it, so walking up to the TV to change channels is not new for me. Channel and volume knob is really all it takes. It also eliminates the nervous zapping. Honest. I like it.
My previous TV had the buttons on top of the top edge, where they'd be unreachable if it had been wall mounted. Its remote sensor was close to the middle.
A TV should have its remote sensor near the middle bottom, and power, volume and channel change buttons on the front where they can be found and easily *pushed* - not on an edge where they have to be pressed up, down or sideways, or around the back without any visible labels (I know many blind people have televisions but most people have working eyes!) where they have to be fumbled for and pulled forward.
As for Apple polluting the waters of design with stupid concepts, look back in history to the initial release of Quicktime 4. After having literally written a book on designing things to both look good and being easy to use, Apple shredded the book and burned the shreds when it came to the user interface of Quicktime 4.