Can you do without color?
 

Was wondering how many of us use a b&w set as a daily watching tv?

I personally can do without color tv, but I switch it up and favor color sets primarily. I know some AKers probably favor their B&W sets though....Am I right?

I don't have a B&W TV but still enjoy watching old shows in B&W. I could do without color ok.

I can't stand not having color. I have a Silvertone TV sitting in my garage that I won't bother with because it's black and white.

With a color picture, there's more information in the image and it looks more realistic.

I hate B&W tv.

I like my13" color TV I bought at best buy for $59
2 years ago.
I only watch the news, weather, star base atlantis, and "the Shield" TV shows.
I never had a VCR.

I want a B&W HDTV set! :D

TV does suck these days, and man a b&w HDTV would be pretty neat!

Remember that junky '78 Magnavox b&w I posted about...I have a DTV converter hooked up to it and I'm letting it run the "City Drive Live" traffic camera channel 24/7 in my garage...just want to see how long it can go for. (Yes, I am nuts, since I was a kid I did things like this) Anyways, back to the original topic...

:lmao:

I watch a lot of history shows and also the late night shows. As the history shows contain mostly B&W pictures and the late night shows(Leno and such) always have the same background, watching B&W is not an issue for me. I do it all the time my old TVs.

However, I do not have a desire for B&W HDTV-that would seem to somewhat defeat the purpose.

I have the closest thing available. Casablanca and other classic movies on HD DVD.

When the story in a movie (or TV show) is compelling enough, you don't even think about whether it is in B&W or color.

The answer is NO!
I went the first 20 years of my life without a color set, I'll be darned if I'm going to give it up now! :)

The only time not having color is a problem is when color is used to define something such as in a news program or documentary. For example "The red line on the graph indicates.... and the blue line is...., other than that, I can live without it. It is nice to watch my favorite shows in color such as Lost and House MD.

I don't know if I could go completely without a color set, but the lack of color on a black and white set doesn't _normally_ detract from the show. The exception here is modern shows, with their funny camra angles, jerky camera movement and odd lighting effects that make it hard to follow the action on a black and white set. For example, I was watching one of those crime investigation shows, NCIS I think. And they had this one scene where the camera kept circleing the action, and viewing it through various obstructions, like stained glass and chain link fence, and it was pretty hard to see what was going on, watching it on a 19" GE Accent-Line black and white table set.

But, for most things, and for well-written television, the black and white sets are fine. Color is nice to have, but not required. If the program is good, you hardly notice.

A side note, a lot of people these days haven't ever seen a black and white set. A couple years ago, I had just finished fixing up a dumpster find metal cabinet 23" Zenith tabletop (for big, strong tables). Big, metal, 1960's thing. I was watching the Twilight Zone marathon on the Sci-Fi channel, using an old VCR as a cable tuner. My friend Mike came over, and sat down on the couch next to me, and we watched for a few minutes, then a commercial came on. He turns and looks at me really funny, and said "What the heck? Why are the commercials in black and white too? Is this a black and white TV?"

-Ian

There have been times when I've moved, and just used my 3" Sony B&W set for up to a week or so 'til I got around to hooking up a color set. All I watch is the news, so color isn't a big deal to me. That is, unless I get the bug to see an old eposode of Bonanza, in which case I need to see it on a roundie :)

Charles

I've though about building a HD B&W set before. High resolution B&W CRT monitors are out there and are still used for Medical imaging applications. Megascan, Dataray, Cornerstone, Siemens and others made them in resolutions of up to 8 megapixels (3200x2560).

The earlier 1.3 or 2 megapixel models should scan low enough to sync to either 1080p or 720p, so driving them with a HD set top box should be doable (and as this is B&W is doesn't even need to be one with a VGA output, the Y output will do).

Then add some amplified speakers for sound and build a suitable looking cabinet to house it all (this is where I'd probably fail).

Finding the monitor would be the hardest part now. I let the last one I had go when I sold the VAXstation system it came with.

B&W/Color who cares. As long as it's big and loud, like me.