Nothing To Buy
I'm not sure if it is a function of knowing too much, the products not being quite right, or just a down economy having me skittish. However, for the time being, I just can't seem to buy anything, even with Black Friday just around the corner.
For example, we can start with Blu-ray players. Nope, never bought one. I am still using my DVD player, a Sharp, from 2001. Sure I might like one. While the prices have come down, of course, the longer I wait, my expectations go up. Now, not only do I want the player, but also something that can play NetFlix, and YouTube, oh and Hulu would be great too. Never mind nothing does the Hulu part, but hey, I can hope, right. Clearly the $149 Blu-ray at Wal-Mart is not gonna do it.
Move on to a new HDTV. This time I'd like a 32" LCD. 720p is ok, but I would like for it to not only offer awesome picture quality, but also be internet connected. I've accepted that whatever TV I buy will be the last one for several years. Hence, I want it to be the very latest and greatest. Last year, very little new came out in this area, just some mild incremental improvements. Therefore, I've skipped over this purchase for a year, and wait to see if anything piques my interest at CES this year.
On to GPS gear. I would like a new one, but not truly need it. My maps are from 2005, but with the cost of the update, I could just put it towards a new unit. With MSN getting ready to abandon their service, the GPS companies have to be doing something to make their units better without it. I also notice that Garmin hasn't come out with something for a while which adds to the curiosity. There are units that have free ad supported traffic now, but I'm wondering what the next big thing will be. Network traffic like the Dash Express pioneered? Time based traffic patterns? Better integration to Google Maps? Or something even better? Yup, keeping the wallet closed on this as well.
Which leads us to netbooks. I would love one that could do the following: all day battery, 11" screen, non Win XP OS, can display PDF's, under 3 pounds, and decent processing power. By decent, I mean faster than my Athlon XP-M 2200+ processor, which the current N270 is not, and the Z520 is even more notches slower. Oh, and before you suggest a CULV, I would like this unit to cost around $250 or so. Ok, this might be a pipe dream, but I want something powerful enough to justify lugging it around, but cheap enough that I won't be heartbroken if it disappears. It is not a matter of being careful, but there are times when I just can't have it with me at all times at work. While I've been watching for a sale, I realize that what I want is just not happening for now. Once again, I've gotta wait as the coming wave of smartbooks may fulfill most of this, although, I may have to go to a 10" screen. Check out the video below to see what should be coming in the next several months that may eat the current crop of netbooks for lunch.
At any rate, for now, it just appears that there is nothing quite right to purchase. Perhaps it is just me, or the greater economic times. Here's hoping to better stuff in 2010!
Jonas
For example, we can start with Blu-ray players. Nope, never bought one. I am still using my DVD player, a Sharp, from 2001. Sure I might like one. While the prices have come down, of course, the longer I wait, my expectations go up. Now, not only do I want the player, but also something that can play NetFlix, and YouTube, oh and Hulu would be great too. Never mind nothing does the Hulu part, but hey, I can hope, right. Clearly the $149 Blu-ray at Wal-Mart is not gonna do it.
Move on to a new HDTV. This time I'd like a 32" LCD. 720p is ok, but I would like for it to not only offer awesome picture quality, but also be internet connected. I've accepted that whatever TV I buy will be the last one for several years. Hence, I want it to be the very latest and greatest. Last year, very little new came out in this area, just some mild incremental improvements. Therefore, I've skipped over this purchase for a year, and wait to see if anything piques my interest at CES this year.
On to GPS gear. I would like a new one, but not truly need it. My maps are from 2005, but with the cost of the update, I could just put it towards a new unit. With MSN getting ready to abandon their service, the GPS companies have to be doing something to make their units better without it. I also notice that Garmin hasn't come out with something for a while which adds to the curiosity. There are units that have free ad supported traffic now, but I'm wondering what the next big thing will be. Network traffic like the Dash Express pioneered? Time based traffic patterns? Better integration to Google Maps? Or something even better? Yup, keeping the wallet closed on this as well.
Which leads us to netbooks. I would love one that could do the following: all day battery, 11" screen, non Win XP OS, can display PDF's, under 3 pounds, and decent processing power. By decent, I mean faster than my Athlon XP-M 2200+ processor, which the current N270 is not, and the Z520 is even more notches slower. Oh, and before you suggest a CULV, I would like this unit to cost around $250 or so. Ok, this might be a pipe dream, but I want something powerful enough to justify lugging it around, but cheap enough that I won't be heartbroken if it disappears. It is not a matter of being careful, but there are times when I just can't have it with me at all times at work. While I've been watching for a sale, I realize that what I want is just not happening for now. Once again, I've gotta wait as the coming wave of smartbooks may fulfill most of this, although, I may have to go to a 10" screen. Check out the video below to see what should be coming in the next several months that may eat the current crop of netbooks for lunch.
At any rate, for now, it just appears that there is nothing quite right to purchase. Perhaps it is just me, or the greater economic times. Here's hoping to better stuff in 2010!
Jonas
Labels: blu-ray, GPS, HDTV, netbook, online shopping, purchase
posted by digitaldoc at 11:03 PM
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