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I think PCs never made it to the TV because the control options were never right. Using a bluetooth keyboard in your lap is inconvenient if you're snuggling wi

by chiph 11y ago

I think PCs never made it to the TV because the control options were never right. Using a bluetooth keyboard in your lap is inconvenient if you're snuggling with your spouse (or cat). Much less using a mouse or other pointing device (even the Wii remote). Just awkward. I think the future for PC on TV is going to be voice control. Either the upcoming Cortana on XBox, or something like Amazon's Echo combined with their Fire unit. You could tell it to skip a movie forward 40 seconds to jump past the scary scene that would frighten your child. Or if you're cooking in the kitchen and your hands are covered in flour, tell it to play some Top 40 hits.

ghaff 11y ago
In general, designers/manufacturers have long not paid sufficient attention to interactive modes. I've wasted way too much time and money over the years setting up PCs as media stations only to conclude yet again that the various wireless keyboards and pointing devices I had--combined with software designed for a keyboard/mouse/monitor experience--was just more trouble than it was worth. Traditional remotes on the other hand are also an incredible frustration whenever you need to do something other than a simple pre-defined function. I tend to agree with you about voice control. Voice recognition/AI is finally starting to get good enough that it's a useful rather than just a frustrating control mechanism. The ready availability of rich touch interfaces (whether tablets or phones) is also a big win.
- chiph 11y ago
  The Windows 8/10 UI of having big boxes as program icons is a plus for a living-room PC, as they give you a very large "hit box" for a Wii-type remote. But then you need to enter a URL or search for a movie title/genre/etc, and it falls down.. Lenovo has a home-theater style remote [0] that is wireless and has a keyboard + mouse on it, but again the usage is awkward and doesn't solve the hands-free scenario. [0] http://shop.lenovo.com/SEUILibrary/controller/e/web/LenovoPortal/en_US/catalog.workflow:item.detail?hide_menu_area=true&GroupID=460&Code=888011668 http://shop.lenovo.com/SEUILibrary/controller/e/web/LenovoPo...
  - ghaff 11y ago
    I actually have one of those (or something very much like it from Lenovo). It is probably the least bad keyboard/mouse solution I've run across for a living room PC attached to a TV. But the whole experience still wasn't great. For now, using either a tablet or a laptop with a Chromecast is the best thing I've run across.
jimbobimbo 11y ago
FWIW, Windows Media Center used to have a badass remote control. Coupled with a big screen UI, the experience was great. Catch was - you need to bring a PC to your TV somehow. In my case PC was in the bedroom, so it was fine. Adding a dedicated TV in the living room, however, made me switch to Roku.

by chiph 11y ago

ghaff 11y ago

In general, designers/manufacturers have long not paid sufficient attention to interactive modes. I've wasted way too much time and money over the years setting up PCs as media stations only to conclude yet again that the various wireless keyboards and pointing devices I had--combined with software designed for a keyboard/mouse/monitor experience--was just more trouble than it was worth. Traditional remotes on the other hand are also an incredible frustration whenever you need to do something other than a simple pre-defined function. I tend to agree with you about voice control. Voice recognition/AI is finally starting to get good enough that it's a useful rather than just a frustrating control mechanism. The ready availability of rich touch interfaces (whether tablets or phones) is also a big win.

chiph 11y ago
The Windows 8/10 UI of having big boxes as program icons is a plus for a living-room PC, as they give you a very large "hit box" for a Wii-type remote. But then you need to enter a URL or search for a movie title/genre/etc, and it falls down.. Lenovo has a home-theater style remote [0] that is wireless and has a keyboard + mouse on it, but again the usage is awkward and doesn't solve the hands-free scenario. [0] http://shop.lenovo.com/SEUILibrary/controller/e/web/LenovoPortal/en_US/catalog.workflow:item.detail?hide_menu_area=true&GroupID=460&Code=888011668 http://shop.lenovo.com/SEUILibrary/controller/e/web/LenovoPo...
- ghaff 11y ago
  I actually have one of those (or something very much like it from Lenovo). It is probably the least bad keyboard/mouse solution I've run across for a living room PC attached to a TV. But the whole experience still wasn't great. For now, using either a tablet or a laptop with a Chromecast is the best thing I've run across.

jimbobimbo 11y ago

FWIW, Windows Media Center used to have a badass remote control. Coupled with a big screen UI, the experience was great. Catch was - you need to bring a PC to your TV somehow. In my case PC was in the bedroom, so it was fine. Adding a dedicated TV in the living room, however, made me switch to Roku.