What has happened to the CRT?

I remember the demise of the LED type display when LCDs first came out.

Naebad

I on the other hand won't be buying LCDs for at least another 5 years or so. Maybe even longer. The cheapest 12 inch LCD costs a full month salary for me. More expensive than a PC over here (I'm in Malaysia). It has been 5 years before I finally managed to save up to afford a new PC, so it will be that long before I have enough to afford an LCD monitor (maybe longer since by then I'd probably want to upgrade my PC).

Though, second hand LCDs are starting to appear in places like Cash Converters and they are pretty cheap. LCDs are also cheap when bundled with PCs. But second hand CRTs are even cheaper. I can get a 15 inch CRT for under US$10. Brand new 15 inch CRTs can be as low as US$60.

So, as long as there are developing nations and third world countries, CRTs are here to stay.

The first time I heard CRTs only had a couple of years to go was in 1980.

Yeah, pretty much. The price of the LCD, DLP and plasma TVs and monitors have dropped to the point where most people will go for the flat panel unless it's for a basement rec room or something. They can hardly give away the CRT sets. The new X-box 360 is being bundled with a flat-panel TV for relatively cheap. It was probably like this when color TVs passed a certain threshold relative to B&W sets. We just bought a relatively expensive wide-screen HDTV tube set for a tertiary spot, but it was a tough choice. I'm not sure I'll ever buy another CRT.

Best regards, Spehro Pefhany

quality.

Yep, people are paying xxx more for an inferior product. Thats the power of advertising for you!

BTW one more point there: CRTs are way more robust.

NT

CRTs are now on the fast track to joining the dinosaurs. 5 more years and, poof, they are gone (except for a few niche applications).

Hello Naebad,

Huh? Last time I was at the store they had plenty of TV sets with CRT. Everything with a flat screen was outrageously expensive. An example of CRT sets available:

If our TV would go up in smoke tomorrow I'd go out there and buy another one with a CRT. I mean, why pay over $1500 for a 32" flat screen if a nice 32" CRT set can be had for $300? Chances are, the CRT set might even last longer.

An example of what penalties modern technology can carry: The bulb of our projector in church blew. The new bulb cost a whopping $500.

Regards, Joerg

The wide screen Panasonic Tau one we just bought ('flat' CRT) has an irritating horizontal distortion in the news crawlers- they spread out as they near the edge of the screen, even though the horizontal lines are perfectly straight. After looking at dead steady LCD monitors all day it almost makes me nauseous. It is nice and bright, and okay for occasional use, I guess.

It's all digital in the middle now anyway. Even our analog sets connected to 'analog' cable show digital artifacts due to the cable company's fiber optic network.

Best regards, Spehro Pefhany

The folks I know who do graphics arts work are using LCDs on Macs, and have been for several years.

Best regards, Spehro Pefhany

They are still better for doing picture processing.

Hello Spehro,

But, but, .... a couple of weeks ago I looked at some sets while waiting for the clerk at photo processing. A 32" CRT cost $300. A 32" flat panel set cost over $1500. Ok, the latter was 'HDTV ready', meaning they'll probably hit you with a few hunded more for the module hoping one will become available at all. Also, I can't imagine really needing HDTV for a

BTW, this was close to the store entrance and the sun was illuminating the area, plus lots of fluorescents overhead. It seemed that the CRT offered more power under that scenario.

Regards, Joerg

Hello Naebad,

For wrist watches, because of obvious reasons. But not for other stuff. The radio on our night stand is only a few years old. Guess what? It's got an LED display. Same for the microwave, the phone, the channel number on the TV, the frequency counter, the impedance analyzer, the ...

Regards, Joerg

Hello Richard,

There was a high level scientific adviser to a top notch politician in Germany. It was in the 70's when this dude honestly proclaimed that the TV will be flat in just a few years. May faith in politician's understanding of technology took an instant nose dive.

We all know what it takes to swing a technology: The deal. That hasn't materialized yet and we are far away from this price point.

Regards, Joerg

Just look at horizonatlly scrolling titles/text on a TV prog, looks a lot smoooother on a CRT.

CRTs seem to have a nice human optimised (TM)optical system that the ON/OFF LCD cant cope with (yet). OK geometry can me a prob, but nothings perfect

martin

Ironic isn't it! Cathode rays and Cathode tubes were studied and created in the 1850's. Fifty years before the Fleming Diode, 1904 and Lee Deforest's Audion Triode 1907. I guess it will outlive Triodes by about the same length of time, about fifty years ! Now the CRT's last frontier is/was the output device to a Computer. It will now join the Scrapheap alongside the Typewriter/Teletypewriter and inked ribbons! I remember watching a telephone person installing the latest technology, a Dial-up Telephone ! Remember them, that thing with the numbers that you spun! Copper Oxide rectifiers for Battery Chargers instead of a Tungsol Bulb rectifier, now replaced with SCR's and TRIAC's. $15.00 Membrane Technology Keyboards to replace ASR Teletypes as input devices. Hey I just turned 65 !

Yukio YANO

On Wed, 23 Nov 2005 00:08:47 GMT, in sci.electronics.design Joerg

Or give them a competent education in the first place, like wot me had.

martin

Hello Yukio,

That would be more high-tech than the phone in our kitchen. It is a Western Electric from the roaring 20's, nice oak cabinet, separate ear piece and a fully integrated notepad holder. It has a crank, no rotary dial or any of them thar new-fangled thangs.

Fits right in with the tube radio, the coffee grinder, the percolator. Oh, and I guess I have the only lab that is mostly heated by a wood stove.

Regards, Joerg

The only reason I'll change to LCD when my 5yr old 19" CRT gives out is power consumption.

area, plus lots of fluorescents overhead. It seemed

Seen one advertised with a 3mS response time.

display

with

and

quality.

years at least.

Well, I'll never buy a TV set again. A PC screen is always far better resolution and a TV card the ideal soln.