| > I keep hearing that, I just never see it. There are a lot of things nobody wants which corporations push in unison because they want them. And that's not even accounting for the meddling of the marketing department, which does matter. [In my reply I'll be mostly specific to TVs. Cars is -at least for me- a more complex topic due to AI which I don't want to argue against because I am reluctantly positive about this development (I do realise the privacy issues). Its also a lot higher in price than a TV, which makes the risk/reward higher.] 1) The smart TV is a relatively new phenomenon (to me, I'm in my 30s and I grew up with CRT monitors, I suppose for someone who's 15 it doesn't feel this way). I don't own a TV, but when I bought a TV for my mother back in 2010 it was a dumb TV. Its still being in use, and it was made smart via a Chromecast (but it can be made dumb). My point is: the old supply hasn't dried up yet. Dumb TVs are still in use. 2) Part of the supply is met via the second hand market. If you don't see that, you are not trying hard enough. Go to eBay, type in a brand of a car made in 90s or 00s or fill in ThinkPad T61 or fill in a type of an old TV and off you go. 3) We're also seeing a conversion from TV being less relevant, due to streaming and Internet. This is akin to radio replaced by audio streaming, or PC replaced by tablets and smartphones. It may very well be that people use a dedicated TV less. In other words, I argue that there's less demand for TVs. (Which is why TVs are made more 'useful' by making them smart.) 4) The dumb TV is already here. It has a better refresh rate, and low ms than a traditional dumb TV. This dumb TV is called a 'monitor'. This is what I actually use as my current TV (I lied when I said I didn't have a TV, but its technically an 7+ year old monitor with a TV module. Its 24", and we barely use it). So in short conclusion, concerning the dumb TV: 1 & 2) The replacement is relatively new and the customer has to learn the + and - of the newer version. The old supply hasn't dried up. 3) Demand has shifted. Customer perceives a smart TV as more capable. 4) Other product -still being actively made- satisfies demand. I have no reason to doubt that supply & demand doesn't work in this specific market. Furthermore, you might want to take a look at importing from Asia. There's a relatively new market with a large supply of options over there. |
Also see "not accounting for the meddling of the marketing department" - not all things just "happen". And while you make good points about streaming (having to schedule yourself around broadcasts is a huge drawback, after all) TV getting "smarter" and them being the way they are are still not exactly the same thing.