Talking to the TV is usually a sign of extreme agitation, mental instability or loneliness. TV manufacturers are set to make it a more rational behavior this year, with a range of sets that respond to speech.
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(Yonhap News) |
LG Electronics on Monday said it will sell a remote with its high-end flat-panel TVs that contains a microphone. You'll be able to speak into the microphone to enter text on the TV for Twitter updates and Web searches. You still won't be able to change the channel or control the volume by yelling at the TV.
Samsung Electronics also said it would have TVs that responded to voice commands. In addition, it's launching its first TV with a built-in camera. As you watch the ES8000 set, it will watch you back, looking for hand gestures that prompt it to move the onscreen cursor or launch apps.
The two Korean rivals were the first to show new models at a preview day ahead of the International Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas, which opens Tuesday. The show will feature many variations of so-called ``smart'' or Web-connected TVs.
Google Inc. has tried to break into the living room with software for smart TVs. So far it has been a flop. But Sony Corp. revealed at the show that it's sticking to Google TV and bringing out a Blu-ray player that runs the software. That player will have a remote with a microphone for voice-powered Web searches.
``Smart'' TVs have been around since 2008, but two things are holding them back. One is that the conventional TV remote is a hopeless tool for Web browsing, typing, and other PC-like behaviors.
``Anyone who's actually checked email on a 50-inch (127-centimeter) TV knows it's not a good experience,'' said Shawn Dubravac, head of research at the Consumer Electronics Association, which puts on the show.
As TVs become increasingly complex, more buttons are popping up on remotes. But that's a trend that can't continue, Dubravac said. TV makers are now looking for alternatives. Last year, LG introduced a ``Magic Wand'' remote that's motion-sensitive, much like a game-console controller. This year, it's taking another page from Microsoft Corp.'s Kinect game console and introducing a 3D camera that perches on top of a TV and interprets viewers' motions, letting them control the on-screen cursor with hand movements.
``I think 2012 will be the year of the interface,'' Dubravac said.
Samsung will be using its built-in cameras to try to recognize who's in front of the TV. It will then bring up the right household member's personalized ``hub'' of applications.
The other thing holding back ``smart'' TV: Viewers interact more with the cable or satellite set-top box than they do with the TV itself. The set-top box is where you find shows and change the channel.
Cable and satellite companies seem far less interested in revamping how people interact with their boxes. Dish Network Corp. unveiled a new box it calls the ``Hopper'' on Monday. It takes digital video recording to a new level by automatically recording all primetime shows of the four major networks. But it comes with a conventional remote, covered in buttons.
The renewed focus on smart TVs comes as TV makers are scrambling for new features to interest buyers. U.S. TV sales are in decline after a rush to upgrade to high definition and flat panels abated.
Amid the slowdown, Asian TV makers tried to make 3-D a ``must-have'' feature, but that effort has fallen flat. Leichtman Research Group conducted a survey that found 80 percent of Americans have heard of 3-D TVs, but just 5 percent intend to buy one.
There's another innovation waiting in the wings: Both LG and Samsung showed off TVs made of organic light-emitting diodes, or OLEDs, and said they'll start selling them this year. It's the first new screen technology since LCDs hit the scene. OLED sets are thinner than LCD sets and can boast impressive image quality. But they'll be too expensive to be more than a niche product, and manufacturing difficulties may keep the price level high for years. Sony brought out a small OLED TV a few years ago, but has since given up on the technology.
LG is also showing off an 84-inch (213-centimeter) set with a resolution that's more than four times that of top high-definition set. This so-called ``4K'' resolution represents another advance in screen technology that will take time to reach consumers, if it ever does _ there are as yet no 4K TV channels or movie discs. (AP)
<관련 한글 기사>
TV의 진화..음성을 듣고 얼굴도 알아본다
스마트 TV가 진화를 거듭하고 있다.
사람의 얼굴을 인식해 시청자에 따라 프로그램을 추천해 주는 가하면 시청자의 말에 따라 채널이 변경되기도 한다.
10일(현지시간) 개막하는 'CES 2012'를 앞두고 삼성전자와 LG전자 가 9일 공개한 스마트 TV는 지난해보다 업그레이드된 기능을 갖춰 사용자들의 편 의성을 한층 높일 것으로 보인다.
우선 삼성전자의 스마트 TV는 음성 인식과 동작 인식, 얼굴 인식 기능을 갖췄다.
"채널 원"이라고 하자 1번 채널이 켜지고 "채널 투"라고 하자 2번 채널로 변경 됐다. 또 "웹브라우저"라고 외치자 인터넷 화면으로 바뀌었다.
웹브라우저상에서 클릭해야 할 경우에는 엄지와 검지, 중지 등 3개 손가락의 끝을 모으는 동작을 하자 이를 인식해 클릭이 됐다.
얼굴 인식 기능도 재미있는 기능이다. TV안에 카메라가 설치돼 있어 미리 사진 을 찍어 입력해 두면 시청할 때마다 TV가 시청자의 얼굴을 인식하고 그 시청자가 선 호하는 채널, 최근 본 채널 등을 표시해 준다. 시청자가 어린이일 경우에는 성인 프 로그램은 보지 못하게도 한다.
삼성전자의 스마트 TV는 이런 인식기능을 TV 자체가 한다.
삼성전자 윤부근 사장은 "텔레비전이 듣고(listen), 보고(see), 실행한다(do)"는 말로 새로운 삼성 스마트 TV의 기능을 압축했다.
LG전자의 스마트 TV도 진화했다.
작년까지는 포인팅(Pointing) 기능만 탑재돼 '클릭'만 편하게 하는 수준이었으나 올해 판매될 제품에는 음성인식, 매직 제스처, 휠(wheel) 기능이 추가된다.
음성인식 기능은 리모컨에 대고 말을 하면 TV가 이를 알아듣는다. 이 기능은 인터넷 검색때 자판을 눌러야 하는 번거로움을 덜어 준다.
매직 제스처 기능은 리모컨을 쥔 채로 특정 손동작을 하면 TV가 이를 명령으로 인식하는 기능이며, 휠 기능은 컴퓨터용 마우스 휠과 유사한 기능으로 인터넷 검색시 화면을 편하게 읽어 내려갈 수 있게 해 준다.
