I smugly thought I would, for a while, be at the leading-edge of home entertainment technology. This illusion was shattered last week when I attended Intel`s Developer Forum in San Francisco and sat through a digital home presentation by the company`s technology experts.
I realised I would soon have to do away with my entire home entertainment system as I know it. This came as a major blow to me, because four months ago I invested in a large-screen TV, a hi-fi and a home theatre system.
My advice to anyone at this point is that if you are thinking of investing in any home entertainment system, and if it`s not digital - don`t!
As a matter of fact, don`t invest in anything that`s not digital - period.
Basically, by the end of the forum`s digital home presentation, I realised Intel and its partners are beating a path straight to your home. If you don`t keep abreast of technological advancements, you risk looking like one of the Flintstones, with prehistoric home appliances that quickly become unusable.
If you don`t keep abreast of technological advancements, you risk looking like one of the Flintstones, with prehistoric home appliances that quickly become unusable.
Kaunda Chama, features editor, ITWeb
The presentation centred on how home computing is on the brink of a major change. Soon, home computers will no longer only be used for school assignments, gaming and home-office work. They will become the conduit through which we will receive all our communications and entertainment.
Think voice over IP, Internet radio stations, streaming audio/visual data and Internet TV stations. I have it on good authority that there are companies that rent out feature-length movies over the Internet. For a fee, these firms allow you to download a movie file to your PC for a specified period of time.
Added to this, I took some time to visit the Apple store in San Francisco, took one look at the breathtaking advances Apple Macintosh has made in digital entertainment, and thought: "If that`s what they have in stores, I wonder what they have in their development labs?" Scary, I tell you!
Regulation issues aside, it also looks like Internet-based radio and TV stations will have major uptakes worldwide and people will change the way they view home entertainment, gaming and computing.
While mind-blowing new digital technology is on its way, I think people should hold on to their old electrical appliances for a little while longer.
Seriously speaking, one should keep away from purchasing what seem to be "state of the art" home entertainment devices for some time because what is cooking in the kitchen - no pun intended - is definitely beyond your wildest dreams.
Share