Flat Screen - why?

[Puffinater]

[quote name='HeavySurf']The older TVs look dated now, especially as they are no longer manufactured. Dated means the item in question looks old. Changing those TVs for the flat screens updates the look of the stateroom.

It is no different than changing the old floral or paisley bedspreads for the more current white duvet covers. The cruiselines don't want to have dated decor because it lowers the general impression for passengers just as a dated hotel decor or dated restaurant decor diminishes the experience.[/quote]

I will agree with this statement. The ascetics of the cabin are very important.

[mo&fran]

[quote=Cruisin' Forever!;24039419]Hey, thanks foureyedbuzzard! Finally got an answer to one of my questions asked elsewhere.

To the original poster of this thread (and to others who've placed replies here):

I have a Grand Suite on a TA cruise on NOTS next year and with all those days at sea, TV picture quality will be a bit more important (not all of it is lousy programming). When the clubs close, and the night is cloudy (I love astronomy) and I'm still wide awake, TV sure can come in handy. :)

I was wondering which TV type they had because I saw two different views reportedly from a Grand Suite on Navigator- one had the stock photo with the CRT set and the old beds and linens; the other had a photo showing a flat screen TV with the new linens that I suspected actually came from a Freedom Grand Suite.

I do have a personal preference for flat screen TVs. In my opinion, modern flat screens have a sharper, superior picture to the old CRTs. I also have vision problems that the picture clarity found in a flatscreen coupled to HD can really help me get past. Old fashioned CRT TVs just don't compare. Every flat screen TV I've had in a cabin has always been superior to those old CRTs!

Does this mean I am intending to spend all my time on this cruise watching TV? Certainly not... what a silly assumption that would be to make! But when I'm going to watch a TV, I'd like it to be the very best they (meaning RCI) offer, if possible.

Do I base my cruise on what sort of TV is in the cabin? Obviously not... If that was the case, I would have chosen Independence of the Seas or Celebrity Equinox. I just assumed that Navigator being as old as she is, probably had the old frumpy blurry CRT TVs... until I saw a picture with a flat screen TV in a Grand Suite purportedly from NOTS. So that beggered the question (amongst many RE Navigator) that I had. When I saw what I'm now guessing was a picture from Freedom (or one of her sisters) of a Grand Suite and presented as a Navigator Grand Suite, I thought, "Cool! They've done some major upgrades besides just linens and matresses!"

Hey, I'd take an old working CRT TV over a broken flatscreen TV in my cabin anyday! :D

Now, if they would just put a flatscreen TV in the wall over the Grand Suite bathtub as I've had in some nice hotel rooms (Red Rock Canyon Spa in Vegas comes to mind...) that would be just wonderful.

Cheers,
Paul[/quote]

keep in mind that on a T/A , the ship will be out of range of satelites carrying commercial tv signals, like CNN , but I think RCI has a network feed of their own, but I don't remember what network it was. This is from a NOTS T/A from 2 years ago.

[OrdieJ]

Its not important, just nice to have.

[mo&fran]

[B]B[/B]ottom line on flat screen vs CRT is a considerable reduction in the amount of electricity used, be it a tv or computer monitor. That extra electricity being used by the CRT shows up as a lot of heat generated. Hold your hand over a CRT and you will find that heat. And if you in A/C season, the A/C has to waste more electricity getting rid of that heat.

[Aquahound]

[quote name='mo&fran'][B]B[/B]ottom line on flat screen vs CRT is a considerable reduction in the amount of electricity used, be it a tv or computer monitor. [/quote]

It depends on the flat screen. Plasmas create a lot of heat.

[mjldvlks]

[quote name='octagonmike']Maybe they have Satellite HDTV on board like we do in the UK ?[/quote]
Sorry. Aruqvan said "cable" and that was a straight line I could not resist.

[travelbug11]

Gosh - I just can't seem to remember if the 3 cruises I took last year had a CRT or flat screen, I guess it really wasn't that important.

[Jimnbigd]

Carnival Ecstasy January this year -- had a flast screen. Good picture, but the last passenger set the alarm to so the TV went on at 6:30am. First morning I thought it was a fluke. Second morning I figured it must be a TV alarm. Problem was, no manual anywhere, not even from the cabin steward. It took me an hour to figure out how to turn off the alarm.

RCCL Voyager of the Seas March this year -- same old TV, and this time the color on the far right side was messed up so it showed lots more green than it should. TV needs replacing.

[zekekelso]

[quote name='mo&fran']keep in mind that on a T/A , the ship will be out of range of satelites carrying commercial tv signals,[/quote] So you are saying there's no physical cable??? It's satellite only?

[tip]

Can you believe that this thread has over 60 posts in less than 24 hours?

It makes no difference to me what so ever what type of screen the television in the cabin has! On our Independence of the Seas cruise, I may have watched CNN for a few minutes while "The One Who Must Be Obyed" was getting ready...and of course some of the old Ozzie and Harriet programs!

Now the important question is, "What was Ozzie's occupation on the show? I watched a few and he never seemed to have a job outside of the home! I don't remember him working outside of the home in the 50's either when the show first aired!;)

[aruvqan]

[quote name='tip']Can you believe that this thread has over 60 posts in less than 24 hours?

It makes no difference to me what so ever what type of screen the television in the cabin has! On our Independence of the Seas cruise, I may have watched CNN for a few minutes while "The One Who Must Be Obyed" was getting ready...and of course some of the old Ozzie and Harriet programs!

Now the important question is, "What was Ozzie's occupation on the show? I watched a few and he never seemed to have a job outside of the home! I don't remember him working outside of the home in the 50's either when the show first aired!;)[/quote]
Wiki for the answer :D

In 1952, the Nelsons starred with [URL="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rock_Hudson"]Rock Hudson[/URL] in the [URL="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Universal_Studios"]Universal-International[/URL] feature film, [I]Here Come the Nelsons[/I]. The film depicted Ozzie as an advertising executive assigned to a campaign promoting women's underwear. [I]Here Come the Nelsons[/I] is the first, and only, instance that Ozzie Nelson's job is clearly stated. The film, produced in the summer of 1951 while the radio show was on hiatus, opened theatrically on February 23, 1952. It also doubled as a "pilot" for the television series, as Ozzie wanted to see if his family would be accepted on film as they were on radio. The success of [I]Here Come the Nelsons[/I] convinced him that Ozzie & Harriet's future was on the small screen, while continuing their weekly radio show (for the time being).

Amazing how divisive the CRT vs flat screen is ...

I didn't go on the cruise for the decor of the cabin, though I found it comfortable. I went for the float, the food, and the relaxation in warmth as opposed to the double storm the north eastern coast of the US got!

[JCafaro]

[quote name='aruvqan']I didn't go on the cruise for the decor of the cabin[/quote]

Just to be clear, I don't think anybody here is saying they wouldn't book a cruise based on the TV. It is just that it would be nice if royal took pride in keeping their decor modern and not dated.

[Coralc]

I must have missed the controversy part, some people like TV's on cruises...some people don't. Some people who don't care about TV , and some who do think the CRT's are fine. Some people like the new....I forgot already, It's not a flat screen...a flat panel. I don't think anyone cruises for the TV. But it's fun to talk about them, and it is still cruise related... :D

[Cruising Forever!]

[quote name='mo&fran']keep in mind that on a T/A , the ship will be out of range of satelites carrying commercial tv signals, like CNN , but I think RCI has a network feed of their own, but I don't remember what network it was. This is from a NOTS T/A from 2 years ago.[/quote]

I am sure they pipe in something (music vids, movies, ship position, etc) while out of range.

I used to LOVE RetroTV on RCI ships. Shame they dumped it. Those old Bewitched and I Dream of Jeannie episodes were so nostalgic!

Interesting to read about all the really terrible pictures on CRTs here in this thread! Sounds like they got more swapping out and upgrading to do!:D

Cheers,
Paul

[Jimnbigd]

[quote name='aruvqan']In 1952, the Nelsons starred with [URL="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rock_Hudson"]Rock Hudson[/URL] in the [URL="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Universal_Studios"]Universal-International[/URL] feature film, [I]Here Come the Nelsons[/I]. The film depicted Ozzie as an advertising executive assigned to a campaign promoting women's underwear.[/quote]

Gosh, Ozzie would have a hard time selling to Britney Spears, Paris Hilton, and Lindsay Lohan. :D:D:D

[bobmacliberty]

[quote name='aruvqan']No I don't have HD, and I rather doubt that the ship has HD - the cable reception sucked.

I am not going to pay for HD, to me it is a waste of money, I can see regular just fine. [/quote]
You must not be into sports!! Try watching football in HD where the cameras can zoom out to show you how all of the players are lined up, and how the play evolves, while still being able to make out details like jersey numbers. Better yet, try watching the Masters golf tournament from Augusta National in HD. The grounds are absolutely stunning...something that you can't see nearly as well in standard def. Or for weird entertainment, watch your local news person (or your favorite celebrity) in HD to see all of the flaws that they really have in their face. For something a little more upscale, Discovery Channel and HDNet have some absolutely amazing nature and travel shows in HD.

As you can tell, I'm an HD freak. 6 TVs receiving HD in a house with 4 people. I was in a Sheraton Hotel last week with a really nice, large LCD TV in the room, but a really poor standard def signal. :confused::confused: Drove me nuts...what a waste.

Of course, that's all mostly irrelevant on a cruise. :D

[Aquahound]

[quote=Cruisin' Forever!;24050040]I am sure they pipe in something (music vids, movies, ship position, etc) while out of range.
[/quote]

They do, Paul. Most of the channels are broadcast from their closed circuit system on board. I believe the news channels and live sports channels are the only ones picked up by satellite.

[Cruising Forever!]

[quote name='Coralc']I must have missed the controversy part, some people like TV's on cruises...some people don't. Some people who don't care about TV , and some who do think the CRT's are fine. Some people like the new....I forgot already, It's not a flat screen...a flat panel. I don't think anyone cruises for the TV. But it's fun to talk about them, and it is still cruise related... :D[/quote]

Yes, there was a love affair for a short time with "flat screen" TVs which were really flat fronted CRTs- I know, I had one in a 35" Sony that had a phenomenal picture... until I dumped that for my current Samsung LED flat screen (flat panel) 1.2" thick 55" screen with the most ridiculously clear picture I've ever seen. :D

Imho, flat screen (flat panel) TVs are better for all the reasons listed here: lower power consumption (of great interest to a cruise ship operation, I would think), way higher picture quality (all the time unless there's something fundamentally wrong with the flat screen) than CRT; and a much smaller footprint. (actually, more of a wall print) I never thought about the aesthetic aspect... nice point, Paul!

Again, does it influence my choice of a ship? Nope.
Would I consider my cruise ruined if they only had CRT TVs aboard? Nope.
Do I sit around and watch tons of TV on a cruise? Nope.
Would I prefer a flat screen TV (flat panel)? Yup.

By the way, if you are in suite #1598 on NOTS and there is a CRT with a lousy or even slightly less than perfect picture, please complain loudly and say things like, "I sure wish this suite had a 32" flat panel TV!!!" (just kidding!) :p Another thing to say, "Navigator is not green!" That sends shudders through board rooms these days! (kidding... calm down...:D)


Cheers,
Paul

[Cruising Forever!]

Hey- check out the picture of the TV in our first cruise ship ever, the Carnival Holiday! See my Cruise Review Page link below! We thought we were "living large" back then!!! :D

[Aquahound]

[quote=Cruisin' Forever!;24050297]Hey- check out the picture of the TV in our first cruise ship ever, the Carnival Holiday! See my Cruise Review Page link below! We thought we were "living large" back then!!! :D[/quote]

Nice! Quite a difference from that 32" on the Solstice, huh? ;)

[SamFritz]

Prior to our recent Grandeur Cruise DW and I chose not to Pay Per View "The Blind Side", hoping that we might be able to watch it in our room one night on the cruise. Lucky for us. We could watch in in English, Spanish, French, Portugese and who knows what other languages. We watched it on that little 12" screen. (in English). We also enjoyed "The Invention of Lying." I do think that where they invest in LCD flat pannels, they should also invest in an HD system for delivering the signal to the TVs.

[crbonfiber]

[quote name='aruvqan']Ok, will not having a flat screen TV really ruin your cruise?

At home here, I have a flat screen TV, and I have the old school CRT TV. They get essentially exactly the same picture. In cabin 6300 on the Explorer, back on the Feb 5th cruise, we had a CRT TV, and it worked just fine.

Dudes, can you possibly explain to me what is so all fired important to replace a perfectly functional CRT with a flat screen TV? I admit I am fully baffled ... I have better things to do on my cruise than to worry about something that picayune [I would rather spend my time worrying about having enough room for that extra dessert][/QUOTE]

Dude get a life ...What a stupid post

[Cruising Forever!]

[quote name='Aquahound']Nice! Quite a difference from that 32" on the Solstice, huh? ;)[/quote]

Oh... Yes!

Ahh, Solstice! :cool:

Oasis had nice flat LCD TVs, too. In fact, Oasis was very similar in many ways to Solstice.

Oasis had flat panels all over the ship as info touch-screens, too.

I am writing my ultimate Oasis review now... will be posting to my Cruise Review Page soon!

Cheers,
Paul

[goose30]

[quote name='Coralc']We had a weird problem with the flat screen on Radiance in November....you couldn't turn the stupid thing off. :mad: The first night, I just put a towel over it. :rolleyes: The second night it took about 15 minutes and some strange combination of buttons on the remote to make it shut off. I asked H why he hadn't shut it off, he said he couldn't figure out how....Mr. tech guy? :rolleyes:

EDIT: The on/off on the TV button didn't work to turn it off either. (I'm not that dumb and tried that first) :-)[/QUOTE]

how about the plug?

[Coralc]

[quote name='goose30']how about the plug?[/QUOTE] I could have unpluged it, I guess. :D And I probably would have except that it was a month before my hip replacement and bending and crawling behind the set was not an option. It wasn't that big a deal, just annoying. :D