apartment therapy changing the world, one room at a time

No TV.

There are times when this would be appropriate, like when I am dressing up sick for work and need the added visual aid. Also, if the full audible spectrum were available, I could avoid going out for some meetings since it would be more lifelike.

This will become just like webcams. Used solely by two completely opposite groups. Grandparents wanting to see their baby grandkids (even toddlers don't wanna sit in front of the cam), and people watching each other get nakey. Pass.

I remember going to the Museum of Science and Industry in Chicago as a kid and talking to my father over the video phone. This was the early 1970s, and we believed every home would have this in just a few years.

Given the popularity of email and text messaging, I think we've actually gone the other way, toward a much less personal form of communication. Guess seeing each other isn't as desirable as the "futurists" of the past thought.

I already have this setup in my living room with a iSight camera and a mac mini attached to my big screen . . . it's actually been pretty fun doing some video conferences for work or just with friends I haven't seen in a long time. They are usually using their computers so when they appear on the screen, they look almost life size. It really is a great luxury to have if you have other tech-savvy friends you want to talk to "in person"

At this point I don't feel like I need to see the people I'm talking to... but maybe in a few years when I have kids and grandma and grandpa are 1500 miles away...

As a college student, I have two main forms of communication, my cell phone and my computer. I think once the video phone reaches the kind of usability of a phone, then it will have potential. But until everyone has one and its a quick one button connection, then I think it really will remain a niche market.