Is there too much choice and too much new technology?

[seriouslyfedup]

Lightouch's post on new technology prompted me to post this thread.

Our 6 year old LCD TV was beginning to show signs of deterioration on the screen so thought we'd move it to the dining room and get a new one for the living room. Simple decision until we looked at TV models available.

Do we need a smart TV, what do they actually do anyway?. Is there any point when our broadband capability varies from 1 to 2 MEG at most being rural. Neither of us are interested in FAcebook, storing photographs etc. Should we get the 3D option, if so then reactive or passive? What processing HZ is best? And a load of other questions like which brand is best. We always bought Phillips or Panasonic before but a recent experience with a Philips blu ray DVD player which has hardly worked since we got it and has a cheap hopeless remote switch has put us off.

Todate we've bought nothing , too overwhelmed by choice and not understanding all the different technologies available. There's so much innovation in technology that as soon as you buy something it's obsolete. I avoid new phones like the plague , and would rather read a book than a Kindle.

And it seems to be the same with everything these days from clothes to food. I'd rather buy less clothing but of better quality. Seems hard to find unless you want to pay £100 for a jumper. Everything seems to be from cheap material which would be lucky to last 2 washes, even many so called expensive brands. Shopping has become a total nightmare. Trying to work out which phone/broadband/utility or insurance provider is another headache, too many options and few can be readily compared for best value.

Same when food shopping, nothing is as it seems. Won't buy meat which been near Asia or Eastern Europe after watching a BBC3 documentary on an Indonesian prawn and Thailand chicken processing plant. So now have to check labels for these things as some Tesco prawns caught in the Atlantic are still processed in China. Then there's misleading pricing offers, what's labelled as being a special offer is often signficantly less special than the normal .

Maybe I'm becoming more indecisive as the years go by. But overall result is we buy much less than we used to. Mad isn't it.

[susieboots]

Yes it's a mad mad world.

I also believe there is too much choice, and technology has moved too fast. What's that all about, why the need to upgrade everything.

I have an LCD TV and do not propose to change it for anything else until it blows up!

My mobile is touchscreen, and I wish I had never changed it. I keep touching wrong keys when texting and can't find my way easily around the menu! Rarely use it anyway.

As for meat - I am paranoid as to where my meat comes from (too many scares watching TV documentaries). My buy my meat from a farm butcher who owns the animals and can trace their line. It is no more expensive than going to the supermarket.

I don't change my utility provider. I simply negotiate a better deal with them on an annual basis.

Did I leave anything out? lol

I think I am a modern girl living in the 1950s lol

[babyblu64]

Oh, the joys of modern living!!!
I agree, there is too much and it is all too costly.
My major bugbear is clothing. What has happened to the sizing? Years ago, I could go into a shop, pick my size from the rack and know it would fit. Now, every shop seems to have a different interpretation of my size. As for comfort, forget it!!
My solution? I have bought a number of comfortable cotton kaftans, long ones. Unless I am going out, this is what I wear on a daily basis. No clinging, no itchyness, and decent enough if an unexpected visitor calls.
Oh, and don't get me started on foorwear, lol.

[acheron]

decisions, decisions, decisions ??

yes too much choice and technology moves too fast for my tiny brain to keep up

clothing sizes ahh got size 6 in my wardrobe to size 12 and they all fit just depends where I buy from

shoes ballet shoes where you can feel every bump through the soles or hooker shoes which would lead me to a & e ending up in plaster I'll stick to my trainers & doc martins

kindle v books this is a tricky one do prefer to read a book but the kindle has some good advantages my son bought me the new sherrilyn kenyon book on it's release date (one of my favorite authors ) I was dying to read it he gave it to me it's in hardback and 846 pages so it's very heavy I had to then download it as my arms are very weak and could hold it the kindle is so light

touchscreens (growl) I can't get on with them at all my son gave me a fancy dangle phone oh hell tried to get to a number and you have to sort of run your finger up the screen well all the contacts just kept flying past me I have no patience at the best of times so I'll stick to the buttons xx

[mikeydt1]

for me i am very grateful for this technology as it is my life saver and keeps me going.

got to agree that there can be too much choice which can be overwhelming for those not in to it but better than little choice as they say.

got to agree that it can be expensive which is why people need to shop around and not go straight for the first one they see.

example i needed a new computer as i was stuggling to see my small screen so opted for 2 system, desktop and monitor, after shopping online got a desktop computer for a mere £240.00 and a 5 year guarantee for only £40.00 and i had a voucher so guarantee cost nothing!

as for expense think most of the problem we have got now is the VAT which is 20% if you look at the original price then what is added as tax it is ridiculous.

if you ever got stuck then there are plenty of people online who can help plus there are plenty of reviews which can point in the right direction.

mike

[flowerangelx]

I have a touchscreen phone because it was a gift from my father..I was happy with my old Nokia N95.

I HATE the idea of having a kindle or an E-reader. I can understand why they are practical, but..imagine if you lost it? You'd lose all of your books in one go. I couldn't cope with that as I'm an avid reader. I like to turn the pages..feel the paper, if that makes sense?

I prefer sending postcards/letters to sending emails, but I do prefer texting to phone calls.

As for clothing..urgh! People assume that because I'm fat, I want to wear frumpy crap. Nope, I don't. I'm 25, I don't want to wear horrible, shapeless clothes that make you look even bigger than you are.

And shoes..I like comfortable shoes, but hate trainers. I buy ballet pumps and glue in another insole.

[Kodiak]

I HATE the idea of having a kindle or an E-reader. I can understand why they are practical, but..imagine if you lost it? You'd lose all of your books in one go.

I have a Kindle and I can tell you this would not happen. OK you could lose your Kindle, or even damage it to the extent it was useless. This would not mean you would lose all your books as once you have downloaded a book and if you lose it for any reason you can simply download it again to your account.

So if you lose your Kindle then once you get a new one you link it to your Account and then you will be able to download all the books you had on your old Kindle.

One of the best things about a Kindle you can go away on Holiday and take with you as many books as you would like. If you were taking real books how many could you take? 6 maybe 7 books, with Kindle 6 maybe 7 Hundred books.

Do not forget you can also surf the web on a Kindle even the cheapest one like I have.

[acheron]

Hi Flower I too am a avid reader got 1000's of books on both paper and kindle and do love to read from a book (the smell of the ink the feel of them just getting to the end of a book and caressing the cover and sort of sighing think wow love this book sad I know )

but the kindle also has good advantages light weight , you can change the font size , downloads in seconds (no waiting for a book to be dispatched and royal mail to deliver ) and with the amazon kindle you're books are stored so if you did lose it or it breaks you're books are safe

also theres text to speak (not to keen my self sounds abit stephen hawkinsish ) and you can try samples before you buy theres lots of freebies and best of all you can sometimes send the book back and get you're money back if it wasn't up to much

hope you're feeling a little better xx

[flowerangelx]

I have a Kindle and I can tell you this would not happen. OK you could lose your Kindle, or even damage it to the extent it was useless. This would not mean you would lose all your books as once you have downloaded a book and if you lose it for any reason you can simply download it again to your account.

So if you lose your Kindle then once you get a new one you link it to your Account and then you will be able to download all the books you had on your old Kindle.

One of the best things about a Kindle you can go away on Holiday and take with you as many books as you would like. If you were taking real books how many could you take? 6 maybe 7 books, with Kindle 6 maybe 7 Hundred books.

Do not forget you can also surf the web on a Kindle even the cheapest one like I have.

Like I said..I prefer the actual books in my hand. I can surf the web on my phone or tablet.

I only read one book at a time so it'd be pointless for me to have a kindle

[flowerangelx]

Hi Flower I too am a avid reader got 1000's of books on both paper and kindle and do love to read from a book (the smell of the ink the feel of them just getting to the end of a book and caressing the cover and sort of sighing think wow love this book sad I know )

but the kindle also has good advantages light weight , you can change the font size , downloads in seconds (no waiting for a book to be dispatched and royal mail to deliver ) and with the amazon kindle you're books are stored so if you did lose it or it breaks you're books are safe

also theres text to speak (not to keen my self sounds abit stephen hawkinsish ) and you can try samples before you buy theres lots of freebies and best of all you can sometimes send the book back and get you're money back if it wasn't up to much

hope you're feeling a little better xx

My auntie offered me a kindle for my birthday, which I turned down..but asked for a book collection instead I can see why people would use a kindle - for example one of my friends has arthiritus in both her hands and can't really manage to turn pages of a book, but can swipe(?!) to the next page on a kindle. I love that idea. But it's just not for me

And thank you xx