It’s TV Time! (Wednesday Link Roundup)
The TV is an appliance that is found in billions upon billions of homes all over the globe. When you go back and read about its history, though, it wasn’t that well-known a hundred years ago. In fact, after the Second World War, there were only a few thousand U.S. homes that owned TVs. So how did this awesome piece of technology actually turn into one of the most-bought living room appliance?
The TV History
If you’re thinking that televisions started as electrical appliances straightaway, then you’re mistaken. The earliest versions were actually mechanical type. These started in the 1800s where images were mechanically transmitted to the screen. Rotating metal disks were the receivers of images sent through wires.
It was only in 1907 when Boris Rosing and A.A. Campbell-Swinton both came up with the cathode ray tube complete with a mechanical scanning system. This paved the way to what we now know as the TV system.
It was in 1927 when the first electronic TV was invented by Philo Taylor Farnsworth as he captured the moving images with a beam of electrons.
Why Mechanical TVs Disappeared
The reason why mechanical TVs were eventually overcome by their electronic versions. First, the latter type was far more superior. They rely on cathode ray tubes (CRTs) and two or even more anodes which were the positive terminals.
The first commercially manufactured TVs in the U.S. were still based on the mechanical system though in 1938, electronic TV already took over.
Pretty soon, improvements were inevitable such as the first remote-controlled TV sets in 1948. This was referred to as the Tele Zoom. Color TVs, believe it or not, were already in existence as early as 1904 though the conceptualized TV system really appeared in 1925. This was invented by Vladimir Zworykin.
While color TV was already invented back in those years, it was only in 1946 when this concept was truly given an audience and was then renewed.
Fast forward to our time, you can now view cable TV shows, there are satellite dishes, DVDs or digital video discs, flat screen TVs and HDTVs. And as if these weren’t glorious enough, we now have smart and 3D TVs to make viewing much more awesome.
Decorating Around Your TV
Television sets are a lot less bulky than their earliest versions though they can still be pretty tricky to decorate around.
TVs are generally black and this can initially present as a problem since you don’t want it to hide in the background. To make it visible and even pop, more so when you want your new wide screen TV to become the focal point, then you have to ascertain that the furnishings are arranged in such a way that your TV becomes the star of the show.
You can begin designing by using a wall unit complete with bookcases and hutch. This piece of furniture will give your living room a more cohesive look since you can also display your other accessories together with your TV set.
If a wall unit is a little too much, then you can also use a chest or a TV console. While these are smaller homes for your TV, they are no less pretty. In fact, you can get creative and start adding your knickknacks.
Add accessories such as a pair of lamps or a rustic box with interesting greens. This will soften the TV area, making your place more inviting and cozy.
You can also set up a gallery wall around the TV. You can then display your favorite photographs or framed artworks. Use black frames so that they match your television set.