Dead Tube

I push the power button.

I hear it go “click” with power. Then, a second later, “click” with unpower.

And that’s about all the TV will do.

It’s funny, because I’ve been thinking about our decade-old RCA TV recently. It’s been a bit slow in the start-up, but continued like a trooper. It’s served us well for a number of years, and the TV cabinet was designed around its form factor.

And therein lies the current crisis, as an entertainment console designed around a 4:3 27″ CRT is not a happy place for a new LCD or Plasma TV set. Because, of course, I’m not getting another CRT.

The opening in the console 30″ wide. Which would make for an overall smaller picture than what we have now, if we put a widescreen TV in. Which means it has to be outside the console, which implies, short-term, either having it at an odd angle, or cantilevering it out, or something strange. (The cantilever idea is not as odd as it sounds.)

Long-term solutions await Jim and Ginger returning for a visit. 🙂

And, yes, it’s odd that nobody thinks of repairing a TV. But, as noted, this is an old TV, and, honestly, the likely cost of repairs (where is, I wonder, my nearest RCA repair shop?) is a substantial proportion of the cost of a new TV. Even Consumers Union indicates that past 3-4 years or so, if your TV goes out, replace it. Speaking of which, they just had a big article on their “best of” LCD and Plasma TVs.

Oh, well. Now I know one thing I’m getting (family-wise) for Christmas.