How will smart TVs change the future of home entertainment?

What is home entertainment?

The elderly people born in the 1960s would think that drinking tea, watching a play or walking on the street are entertainment options to take a break from their busy schedules; the middle-aged people born in the 1970s often watch TV programs and listen to music with their families to relax; while the most active people born in the 1980s and 1990s shuttle back and forth between computers and mobile phones.

The way of family entertainment is changing little by little, and people's requirements for quality of life are constantly improving. The rise and emergence of smart home appliances have a subtle influence on people's values.

So in the face of people's high demands, how do smart TVs gain a foothold in home entertainment?

Video still dominates

Since the appearance of the first domestically produced black-and-white television, television programs have always been an indispensable form of entertainment in families. Whether it is the Spring Festival Gala that appeared in 1984 and has always been the most popular, or the variety shows currently launched by major television stations, the value of television entertainment has always ranked first in the family.

With the development of intelligent television in recent years, the entry of the Internet has also provided a new route for popular videos. In addition to being able to watch traditional TV programs at a fixed time, the application of the Internet can also watch online videos, movies, and self-made online variety shows launched by major online platforms.

Television, which was once exclusively used by TV stations, seems to have a broader development scenario after adding the word "smart". According to the data received, by May 2015, 79% of smart TV users had launched video apps, and about 60% of users had used them for more than 60 minutes. This set of data shows that video has a high appeal to active online users.

With the continuous increase in the types of videos, the fun and viewing value of videos are gradually improving, and videos have the strength to compete with traditional TV programs. In terms of future family entertainment methods, judging from the current development trend, videos still occupy a dominant position.

Video games are another trend that wants to compete with consoles

Since the FC era, consoles have been synonymous with video games. Even if high-end color TVs have their own games, they are just built-in Tetris. With the development of PCs and the introduction of consoles into China, traditional TVs have become large-screen display devices.

Faced with such development, "intelligence" has provided new vitality for consoles. Smart TVs under the Android system have allowed various games to appear on the big screen of TV. Although most of them are casual games and cannot compete with consoles, the advantages of free download and self-installation of APP have allowed users who cannot consume console games to find a way out.

With at least one TV in every household, in addition to games, there is also another way to relax and entertain. Whether it is parent-child interaction or online battles, smart TVs can achieve both. We also obtained some data from major game platforms. From the perspective of user downloads and usage, casual games top the list, while shooting and parkour games with a strong large-screen immersive experience have risen significantly. Although the number of game aggregation halls is small, they are quite popular among users and their volume is growing rapidly.

Faced with this trend, major domestic game hardware manufacturers have also designed numerous TV game peripherals and boxes based on game quality and depth. This has gradually improved the strength of smart games and provided an alternative direction for family entertainment.

What else can smart TV do besides videos and games?

The development of smart TVs is very fast. Thanks to the development of 4K, intelligence has been accepted by more and more families. Whether it is videos or TV games, they provide more possibilities for family entertainment. However, in the face of more active young people, what else can smart TVs do besides videos and games?

"Smart" means to provide convenience for users. Smart TVs based on the Android system have the same viewing functions as traditional TVs, but they are more about the use of various application APP software. Although some people think that smart TVs are just an enlarged version of mobile phones, there is no doubt that application APPs do bring different ways of home entertainment.

In addition to video applications, the emergence of APPs has made multi-screen interaction possible, building a bridge between mobile phones and TVs. The convenience of mobile phones has improved users' experience of using large-screen TVs. The emergence of educational software has also provided many couples with the possibility of living room education. Music, reading, chat and other systems have also made TV no longer a passive input device, and human-computer interaction and communication between people have become more important.

How do smart TVs gain a foothold in home entertainment?

Whether it is a traditional TV or a smart TV, the status of video is unshakable and is always the first choice of users. Video games and application software are a rich extension of smart TV.

Watching TV will always be a rigid demand of users, but there will be more directions for how to play TV in the future.

As a winner of Toutiao's Qingyun Plan and Baijiahao's Bai+ Plan, the 2019 Baidu Digital Author of the Year, the Baijiahao's Most Popular Author in the Technology Field, the 2019 Sogou Technology and Culture Author, and the 2021 Baijiahao Quarterly Influential Creator, he has won many awards, including the 2013 Sohu Best Industry Media Person, the 2015 China New Media Entrepreneurship Competition Beijing Third Place, the 2015 Guangmang Experience Award, the 2015 China New Media Entrepreneurship Competition Finals Third Place, and the 2018 Baidu Dynamic Annual Powerful Celebrity.