It used to be that if you wanted to see a favorite romantic comedy movie, you’d need to go out to either a movie theater and pay high-ticket prices or head out to a rental store (or box) to get it.
Today’s TV technology has not only brought the best elements of the theatrical experience directly into the home, it has also taken movie viewing to a new level. Customers have more choices than ever about what type of equipment, service, picture quality and a variety of other functions that put the control of just about every element of watching TV and movies into the palm of our hands.
What options are out there for today’s viewer? Remember that romantic comedy you wanted to see, let’s take a tour of all the options that affect the viewing experience.
Video quality: One of the biggest changes in TV technology is the video quality on just about any size screen that exists (from 20 inches up to more than 60 inches). Advances in high definition technology make the picture jump off the scream with lifelike. The most recent video technology to hit the TV market is 4K televisions. This new generation of televisions, also known as ultra HD or UHD boast a television picture quality that is a staggering four times the detail of HD making your viewing experience the best it has ever been.
A 4K ultra HD TV picture is 3,840 x 2,160 pixels, giving you more than 8 million pixels in total, which is four times the number in ‘normal’ high-definition televisions. The detail is so real that you can feel as if you’re watching it in 3D but without the need for special glasses!
More time flexibility: In the past, anyone who wants to watch a specific movie had to be home at a certain time to catch the film. DVR helped alleviate some of that concern because people could record the movie while they were out. However, today’s Smart TVs and streaming TVs eliminate the need to record. Viewers can do a simple search of the movies they want to watch and view it immediately via on-demand networks.
On the go: More people than ever are bringing their content when they leave the house. Smartphones and tablets, along with streaming channels have made portable TV the new norm. In fact, Juniper Research released a study showing the number of residential TVs connected to the Internet via devices such as Blu-ray players or set-top boxes would reach close to 650 million by 2017.
Expanded choices: This is probably the most radical change for TV viewers who love movies over the past few years. Consumers have transitioned from going to the video rental store to make movie viewing changes, to having hundreds of channels to select from and, now, a variety of streaming services from which to choose a something to watch. There is no need to get up and go anywhere to find that favorite romantic comedy. The simple click of a search button on a remote quickly brings up every choice available on the various streaming and local channels—both free to view and pay-per-view.
TV technology has changed dramatically just in the last five to ten years. Equipment options, portability, video quality and program choices have soared and promises to only continue its growth as inventors search for new innovations in media broadcasting.