Early Color Optimism

[old_tv_nut]

A few pages about color TV from Technician Magazine, taken from the July through November 1954 issues.

Includes some wildly optimistic predictions of color sales. Also has press release statements about various large-screen color CRT's under development, including a rectangular color CRT under development at DuMont that I never heard of before.

[ChrisW6ATV]

Thank you for the links. I enjoyed those early notes.

[bgadow]

Quite interesting...lots of broken promises there! The Chromatron, the tubes from DuMont & Philco, CBS cranking out color crt's by the boxcar load...they had high hopes at least!

[Keefla]

makes me wanna save all the digital TV literature i see, i wonder in 50 years what we'll say when we look back on that? What about HD radio? Im so sick of hearing the commercials for it im about to abandon terrestrial radio all togeather and give into the demons that are satallite radio. ugh...compressed audio.

[RVonse]

It just took a whole lot longer than they figured for color sales to skyrocket. 10 years later they did sell box car loads of them. And then 10 years after that the vcr recorders came to market the same way. First very expensive and very few of them in homes when then all of a sudden the market went crazy and they were sold in the discount stores for almost nothing.

Marketing is a curious business. I am pretty sure hdtv will be the same trend though. When it finally comes it will come big. Prices will have to hit the floor first though.

[ohohyodafarted]

I remember paying $1200 for my first RCA top loading VHS vcr. It was so expensive I also had a service policy with RCA service company for it's maintenance. I think the service policy was about $135/year. I think that was the only time I was an early adopter of new technology. I learned after that, it was wise to wait until the price droped and the product was improved. I just bought a 42" Phillips LCD HDTV. Wanted a flat screen for years but refused to pay rediculous prices for the early models, which are now rather obsolete, compared to todays offerings.

[John Folsom]

Wayne, thanks for posting those great articles. Now I have to find that ANDREA color TV!

[David Roper]

You mean the FADA? There's one next door to the Fountain Of Youth, but the unicorn keeps a close guard.



The one known "photo" of that set screams retouch so loudly it's deafening.

[old_tv_nut]

Originally Posted by RVonse

... And then 10 years after that the vcr recorders came to market the same way. ...

I had a similar experience with my first CD player. Most were still in the $500 range, when Marshall Field's, of all places, advertised a Philips player on sale for a short time for around $200. I showed the ad around work and about 4 of us rushed down to get one. The sales staff had no clue, we just said "give us that one!" A year or so later and the going price was $200 for all of them, and of course now you can pick up a portable unit at the drugstore for about $25.

[hposter]

Don't give up finding that 'engineering mock-up' of an early DuMont, Andrea, or FADA color prototype Color TV! It might be a real, complete, viable Color TV.

Everyone is familiar with the 1946 CBS/GE 'mock-up' below. This was in several period magazines. An unbelievable set, this console supposedly had a color scanning disc system, with projecting mirror and large projection screen. If you read the article, you'll be sure it was a fantasy TV.

But, I DID BUY this set about 10 years ago, and then resold it to a museum. There was actually one set that was produced, and I was really lucky to own it, at least for a few months! (I only have some B&W photos of the TV left, and copies of the manual and blueprints).

But, this should show everyone here, that some of those 'Couldn't exist' TVs, do in fact, sit in someone's basement! Just keep looking.

Harry

[John Folsom]

Here are two really bad scans of poor quality inkjet prints of photos of the set Harry was talking about. Sad to know it is lost to some obscure museum overseas.

[ctwolf1964]

Originally Posted by John Folsom

Here are two really bad scans of poor quality inkjet prints of photos of the set Harry was talking about. Sad to know it is lost to some obscure museum overseas.

Well at least that is better than it being lost to a landfill.

[John Folsom]

So true.

[Steve McVoy]

One decent photo exists:

http://www.earlytelevision.org/field...rototypes.html

I've seen this set. The translucent coating on the screen has fallen off, but the set is in great shape otherwise.

[roundscreen]

The picture on John Folsoms RX43 is wonderful. So clear and natural.
Does any one know what the 1946 CBS/ GE mock up sold for when it went over seas?
Ed