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TVs you can talk to, without sounding crazy
PETER SVENSSON
(The Associated Press)



06:25:00AM (ET) Tuesday,January 10,2012.

LAS VEGAS (AP) — 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.

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.


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
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Be careful what you say in front of the television...you never know who's listening on Tv.

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