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Did Your Dad Get A HDTV For Father's Day?

GeekSugar — Sun, 17 Jun 2007 10:00:46 -0700

Happy Father's Day to all the fabulous fathers out there. Ever wonder why gadgets seem to be the no-brainer gift of choice for dads on Father's Day? According to the National Retail Federation, 17.8 percent of the $9.9 billion dollars of money spent on Father's Day presents will go towards consumer electronics - with High Def TVs topping many gift lists this year. With new digital cable services like interactive Optimum, HDTV owners can check out 25 high-def channels that satellite service can't deliver. You also don't have to pay for additional equipment or deal with programming charges. Definitely a great idea for dads who love watching sporting events on TV!

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What's Your Favorite Show to Watch in Reruns?

BuzzSugar — Mon, 09 Nov 2009 12:30:00 -0800

Curb Your Enthusiasm is coming to cable: The TV Guide channel and TV Land have both just acquired the show in a joint effort to run old episodes. Larry David and the gang will first appear on TV Guide starting in February, and TV Land will pick up the show from them starting in 2013. Now, I can feed my rerun addiction and catch up on those seasons of Curb that I missed when I didn't have HBO! Not that I need yet another program to watch in syndication.

I don't know how it happens, but I always get sucked into back-to-back Scrubs marathons. I've seen most of the storylines at least twice - Sex and the City episodes at least three times - but I still watch them again and again.

I know I'm not alone here, so tell me: What's your favorite show to watch in reruns? Seinfeld? Everybody Loves Raymond? The Office?

Do You Still Follow TV Shows When They Switch Networks?

BuzzSugar — Mon, 02 Nov 2009 12:30:44 -0800

It's official: Southland is saved! TNT issued a press release this morning announcing that the cable network is resuscitating the cancelled NBC cop drama starting in January.

While this is obviously good news for Benjamin McKenzie fans, I'm still approaching it with moderate skepticism. The series may be alive and kicking, but if the numbers from other swapped shows are any indication, Southland may be in for a struggle. Take, Project Runway: After moving from Bravo to Lifetime, it took off like ratings gangbusters, but has since faced a decline. Or there's my favorite old-school example: Roswell. It used to air on the WB (in its pre-CW days), but after it failed there, it got bounced around to UPN - where it was cancelled again.

Obviously some viewers drop off when a show changes channels, but what about you - do you still follow TV shows when they go under a new network? Or do you lose interest?

Photos courtesy of NBC

Do You Try to Keep Characters and Logos Out of Baby's Sight?

LilSugar — Wed, 28 Oct 2009 09:30:37 -0700

Elmo, Dora, Mickey and Pooh – the characters that appear on our boob tubes are often found running around the playground too. Try as we might to shield our innocent children from the images available on cable television, network TV commercials and online media, just take a walk outside and you are sure to be bombarded by characters and logos that look like they jumped right off the screen.

According to the Campaign for a Commercial-Free Childhood, marketing directly to children has increased from $100 million in 1983 to more than $17 billion today. By the age of six months, a baby can form a mental image of a corporate logo or mascot, making them able to request those brands by the time they can speak. While wooden toys have increased in popularity due to their safer manufacturing processes, they have not outweighed the popularity of character-driven choices that flood the market. Do you try to shield your lil ones from commercial characters and logos?

The Downside of Switching to a Digital TV Signal

GeekSugar — Wed, 10 Dec 2008 14:00:54 -0800

The digital age is upon us, and whether you're on board or not, the old-timey analog TV signal will be switched off on Feb. 17, 2009. This is where I'd tell you to rush out and treat yourself to a new TV (but I think you might get a better price if you wait another week), 'cause that old box with rabbit ears won't do the job come February.

Although the benefits of switching to a digital TV signal far outweigh the drawbacks (including better picture, clearer sound, and more channel options because of more available bandwidth), there is one downside worth mentioning: you may not receive all the analog channels you used to with the new digital signal.

Why? I'll tell you when you read more.

Because digital signals don't reach as far as analog ones, the weaker channels you may have received before probably won't be coming in at all once the switch has been made. This is especially true with channels that use a higher frequency (higher numbered stations), as the signal has a harder time making its way around buildings and through walls than lower numbered stations. So if you were in a habit of watching a certain (fuzzy) station with a high channel number, just be prepared if the screen suddenly goes black on Feb. 17. You've been forewarned.

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The Weather Channel to Show Movies: Brilliant or Baffling?

BuzzSugar — Wed, 21 Oct 2009 07:30:00 -0700

Pack your umbrella and your popcorn: 27-year-old cable network stalwart The Weather Channel is going to start showing movies on Friday nights.

The movies will be weather-themed or feature weather prominently, and the first is the George Clooney drama The Perfect Storm; others lined up include March of the Penguins, Deep Blue Sea and Misery. Of course, TWC won't leave you out in the cold - weather updates will show up on-screen while the movies are playing, so you'll still know when to actually expect the perfect storm (ba dum ching!).

While it's kind of a cute idea, I don't really know what the point is - to get the coveted Friday night viewers looking for a weather-inspired movie on TV? I guess it's not a terrible thing to stumble upon Clooney's face when all you were expecting was a weatherman telling you how cloudy it is in your neck of the woods. What do you make of this news?

Japanese Solar Powered Cell Phones Stream Live TV: Lucky!

GeekSugar — Tue, 06 Oct 2009 01:43:57 -0700

During my travels through Japan, I just had to stop by the Akihabara district. Known as "Electric City," it's packed with blocks and blocks of gadget shops, game arcades, and stores where you can get every kind of cable known to man. It was a geek's dream, and I was living in it.

Cruising around one shop in particular, I noticed how awesome Japanese phones are. Let me start out by saying there aren't many iPhones in Japan - they're way too expensive - and people don't seem to mind. Why? Well, on their slim but lengthy solar-charged flip phones, they can stream TV and watch movies from anywhere in the country. I couldn't help but be jealous of their advanced cell phone tech (and prices - these high tech babies were only about $150 bucks in-store). I say, forget the Solio and give me solar panels on my iPhone!

Check out more pics of the gadgets I found in the Akihabara district of Japan when you read more.

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How To: Skip Ads With a Standard Remote Control

GeekSugar — Thu, 17 Sep 2009 14:31:50 -0700

Don't you just love TiVo? You can skip over commercials at lightning fast speeds, and pause and rewind live TV. It's a luxury I don't think I can live without. Even those of you with a regular, cable-company assigned DVR can perform all these great tricks, but I found a faster way to get through those annoying commercials - you can skip over commercials in 30 second increments with a simple hack and your standard remote.

Why would this be necessary? Oh, I don't know, because you can't wait a single second more to finish watching the latest episode of Gossip Girl, and the never-ending pain med and TUMS ads are out of control? Cause sometimes it seems that even though you're forwarding at four times the normal speed, it still seems to take forever to scrub through? Cause we're all impatient? You know what I mean. Check out the simple six-step hack I found on Wisebread to make your commercials disappear a little quicker when you read more.

Press the Cable button at the top of the remote.
Hold the Setup button until the Cable button flashes twice.
Enter 994 on the keypad. The Cable button will flash twice again.
Push the Setup button once.
Enter 00173.
Finally, push the button that you want to use as the 30-second skip; I chose the A button since I don't use it for anything else. The Cable button will flash twice.

To restore the original functionality to that key, follow the first steps described above, but after entering 994, push the remapped key twice. The Cable button will blink twice if your input has been accepted.

Would You Drop Your Cable and Pay For a Hulu Subscription?

GeekSugar — Sat, 19 Sep 2009 13:12:10 -0700

Since most of you use Hulu and it's being rumored that the free streaming video site is soon going to launch a subscription service, I'm wondering if many of you would considering jumping ship and getting rid of your cable service? Not a ton of details have been revealed about the subscription service, but it will most likely offer content without ads, or more access to television shows and movies. If I could access all of my favorite shows that I'm watching now online, I'd be all for it, but that would mean every TV network would have to jump on board, and I don't see that happening anytime soon. What are your thoughts?

Kate, Lily, Eva, Guy, James and Will Take That and GQ Party!

PopSugarUK — Wed, 09 Sep 2009 05:29:54 -0700

The GQ Men of the Year awards were held in London last night and it was the star studded event you'd expect with guests like Mickey Rourke, Kate Moss, Yoko Ono, Take That, Lily Allen, Will Young, James Corden, Alan Carr, Gemma Arterton and many more! Gary, Mark, Howard and Jason won Band of the Year, and afterwards Yoko complimented the boys, saying, "I love 'Shine'. I know most of their greatest hits. They're a great British band."

The controversy of the night came as Kate allegedly stormed out of the awards with Jamie Hince after host James Nesbitt poked fun at her! Still, she looked happy to support her buddy Lily who won the Woman of the Year award, while Eva Mendes and Guy Ritchie looked rather close at the afterparty!

To see many more fun photos from the GQ Men of the Year awards and party featuring Take That, Yoko Ono, Mickey Rourke, Gemma Arterton, Daisy Lowe, Pixie Lott, Alexandra Burke, Little Boots and many more, plus a full list of the winners, just read more.

Outstanding Achievement - Elvis Costello

International Man - Mickey Rourke

Alfred Dunhill Film-Maker - Guy Ritchie

Woman - Lily Allen

Band - Take That

Sportsman - Jenson Button

Politician - George Osborne

Movie Mogul - Harvey Weinstein

Designer - Giles Deacon

Commentator - Robert Peston

Actor - Michael Sheen

Voice Of Reason - Vince Cable

Solo Artist - Dizzee Rascal

Writer - Geoff Dyer

TV Personality - Ross Kemp

Newspaper Editor - James Harding

Comedian - Michael McIntyre

Chef - Marcus Wareing

Entrepreneur - Matthew Freud

Smirnoff Black Most Stylish Man - David Walliams

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