Unless you are a techie, you may have missed the announcement last week by Google about a new product called Google TV. As soon as it was announced, Google was proclaimed as “leapfrogging Apple” with this invention and a few others. That aside, I’m captivated by the potential that Google TV will make online church a viable, cheap and simple move into the living room. No longer will it be one or two people awkwardly sitting around the computer in the office. Or huddled over a laptop with less than stellar speakers. And, it won’t take someone with an electronics degree to connect all the wires. A church could actually write an app on the open-source Android platform–and wala–it’s on the big screen.
This will be released before the holidays, and will likely be less than $200 to add to an existing TV. Many new TV’s will come with it built-in.
Any other ministry uses you see for this technology advancement?
8 Comments
Cool Stuff Tim. Ive done the same thing with an iPhone and a component cable to a Flat Screen. I was visiting a friend who lives in the sticks with only dial-up available but there was 3g coverage.
This is more evolutionary of what is currently available, rather than something revolutionary. Possibly the only thing "better" would be the addition of live worship services rather than podcast-ed ones.
I believe within the next 5 years, today's desktop computer will be obsolete. Along with this post and the advent of the new "memsistor" which is a new type of transistor which captures data contained in light at 1/10 the cost. The world of technology will be utterly and completely transformed before the end of the next decade. I predict it will be the equivalent to going form horse back to space flight in literally a couple of years.
I was confused until I realized Google renamed the advertising product (previously named Google TV) to Google TV Ads. I've used the ad product. Extremely affordable. Results vary, but easily measurable.
This assumes you believe that church is watching a couple of people (usually a teacher and a band leader) perform while everyone else consumes without participating. Me, not so much…
Great point. While it may be palatable in a consumer-driven society to receive teaching and information, we're kidding ourselves if it doesn't translate into that person getting off the couch and being launched into missonal-living with people with whom they can do real life.
PROS:
- Accessibility
- Higher viewership
- Convenience
CONS:
- Anonymity
- Isolation
- Complacency
I love the concept, but wonder where the bandwidth is coming from.
[...] Google announced 2 weeks ago their concept of Google TV. Tim Stevens is asking us to ponder if that may now actually bring church to our living rooms. [...]