Google Internet TV

In the very recent past, everything was quite simple. You watch your favorite television shows on your TV, and you browse the web on your computer. When some folks became disgruntled because some shows that they can only watch on the internet appear really small on their computer screens, tech companies came up with a solution: they built bigger monitors. Apple for example, came out with the 27″ iMac. If you can’t afford an iMac, you go for standalone monitors with retail prices starting at $300. Problem solved.

But you know, it’s not that simple. We like things to be multifunctional. For example, we don’t want our mobile phones to just be able to talk to people. We have to listen to music, take pictures, and even surf the web with our phones, otherwise, it just won’t do. What can we do, we are complex people after all.

And now Google, comes up with the internet TV or Google TV. The idea is simple, aside from using your TV to watch your TV programs, Google TV enables your ordinary TV to act like a computer where you can watch your internet shows via your TV. Of course you can do this now by using the TV as a secondary monitor, though this means lugging your laptop or your CPU and connecting it to your TV. I guess the people at Google thinks that this is too much of a hassle. And like most folks, I tend to agree. Why flip the channel switch when you have a remote control, right?

I think the idea is commendable, though not exactly novel. We like to mix things up, make our everyday objects or status symbols more functional. Nothing wrong with that I guess. My only problem with this is that the internet, at least for me, is personal. If I want some bonding time with my family, then fine we watch cable TV together. If I want to browse the internet, I’d rather do it alone where nobody’s looking over my shoulders.

Do I really need my TV to be able to stream internet shows? Well, maybe sometimes. But will it compel me to buy another TV set or another contraption that I can attach to my current living room TV just to stream these shows? Ermm, I’ll have to think about it.

I think the Google TV will sell. It will most definitely appeal to those folks who are thinking of upgrading their current TV sets, or those with a lot of money lying around just screaming to be spent. The question now will be how much will those TV sets with Google TV bundled in it cost? For sure these TV sets will be sold at a premium compared to the plain vanilla idiot boxes, the important question is by how much?

I guess like the Kindle, Google TV is one of those contraptions that I’m not very excited about.