The blurriness in this picture is probably in part because of my fear of the roving salespeople, but my phone also just didn't like something about this store -- it's the only place I've ever visited with my new phone that had a significant number of pictures turn out blurry (I've skipped the worst of them). I suspect this store has relatively early LED lighting (from when Walmart first opened in the 2010s), something that often seems to mess with cameras... and all of the extra LED panels on the computer display tables (which look so out of place in Walmart) probably don't help. Amusingly, my home speaker system (which I'm listening to Foster the People on as I write this) is basically the exact Vizio sound bar/surround/subwoofer system as is on that endcap, though I got it from Costco for a significantly cheaper price a few years earlier. Now that Walmart owns Vizio, I'm sure we're going to be seeing a lot more of their products in electronics departments like this!
Huh, I'm surprised to hear that you listen to music on a soundbar as I seem to remember you saying that you usually use headphones! Maybe I'm just misremembering what you said and you were just against a full Hi-Fi system! I don't know, maybe things have changed. I obviously have a full Hi-Fi system, but since the last time we discussed these things, I've upgraded by headphone setup. I even bought a dedicated headphone amplifier, one that is made in the St. Louis area. Maybe now I'm spending more time listening on headphones and you're spending more time listening to loudspeakers? If so, I think that is quite a change!
ReplyDeleteWhat probably hasn't changed is that you would have no interest in listening to what I'm listening to right now on my Shure headphones. It isn't classical music right now, but it is some early 1990s folk music with viola from Western New York. Lol, I suppose stranger things have happened, but I'm certainly not expecting anyone here to beg me for music recommendations!
Hmm... I've never been a big fan of headphones and definitely prefer regular speakers. Maybe you're remembering me saying how much I don't like earbuds and use regular headphones instead, but I only use headphones when I'm out and about. I can really only handle them for an hour or two until they become uncomfortable, and I really don't like the fancy headphones that cup around your ears! I do have a set of bone conduction headphones that I find much more comfortable, but the sound quality isn't great and they don't work at all in a noisy environment (trying to use them on the plane this spring was a total fail, and I didn't really like the noise-canceling headphones Turkish Airlines has in business class either because of the whole over-the-ear thing). So I stick to regular speakers whenever I'm at home!
DeleteHuh, well, I'm not sure what I was remembering then! Maybe you were just anti-Hi-Fi system then. Headphones can be a very tricky thing when it comes to comfort. Some people might find one to be comfortable, but then others may not. Some are fine generally, but aren't comfortable for those with glasses. Some may find one to be comfortable, but then they don't seal well leading to a loss of perceived bass. Some may fit fine, but the material on the cushion might leave one's ears sweaty.
DeleteI find my Shure SRH440A headphones (corded ones, the SRH840A ought to be similar but will trade in a bit of neutrality for a bit more bass response) to be very comfortable. I can listen to a double CD album with them on and not even feel like I'm wearing anything at the end of it. They do have vinyl ear cushions which might get sweaty if it is warm outside, or if you're naturally sweaty, but I don't find them to be a problem inside with air conditioning. I'm not taking them outside.
I bought them from Guitar Center and they still have displays where you can try headphones on before buying them. It might be worth a shot if you want to try on different headphones for comfort. While they do have many models in the stores, they are only wired headphones, I think at least, so I don't know if that'll work for what you're looking for. They mostly sell stuff for audio professionals so I'm sure the consumer wireless stuff won't be there, but maybe Best Buy will have those on display.
Yeah, it's definitely a matter of personal taste. I don't really like headphones that seal around my ears (or within my ears as with earbuds), which mostly leaves basic cheap headphones. I have some ancient Phillips wired headphones that I find comfortable enough, but I still get tired of them after a while.
DeleteI almost wrote this to you in an email because I almost bought insanely cheap tickets to Italy today! But I ended up having second thoughts and decided to wait. One of these days...
Huh, I'm surprised you passed on a cheap ticket to Italy given that I know you were wanting to go back, but I guess airfare is only part of the expense involved with traveling. I've heard some rumblings about airfare in general perhaps being cheaper next year than this year was so maybe you'll still have some opportunities to get a good price if you're able to make things work down the road. I have not looked at European airfares very much over the last few years. What I did look at was very expensive, but that was to Eastern Europe and to places which often requires two connections or mixing different airlines on more obscure codeshare partners. Given all of this, as you can imagine, I didn't spend much time looking into those trips!
DeleteUnfortunately, it was a case of very good prices on not very good flights. There are other, much better flights I've been eyeing and hopefully I'll be able to buy them (or something else) at some point!
DeleteI'd forgotten that Walmart purchased Vizio -- Vizio has always been my family's go-to TV brand for years and years, ever since we started buying flat screens as a matter of fact (so, a really long time, lol!). I'm pretty sure the one in my parents' living room is still a Vizio, and my mom has one in her bedroom these days too which I think may be as well (although that one would be a newer addition, so I'm not sure). I have three at my apartment, one being the one from my bedroom at home and the other two from college (one is very small and was on my dresser in my dorm, while the other is the same 39" size as my home TV and was used in my college apartment's living room). I can also think of two others we used to have but have gotten rid of over the years. Only my dad's TV is a different brand. All of this to say, Vizio has certainly been a good brand for us! Hopefully Walmart doesn't mess with that too much. Then again, as you can tell by the fact that all three of my TVs are still in my possession, I don't go out buying TVs that often, haha! None of these are smart TVs (well -- the smallest one actually is, I think, which is ironic, but it is a super early example that is basically unnavigable!), but honestly I watch TV so infrequently anymore that I don't care... plus I don't really trust smart TVs, not do I see the need to get rid of a perfectly good working television (that might be the accountant in me, haha!). To access streaming stuff I just have some Roku sticks, which to me will do better than a smart TV anyway in receiving regular updates, etc. Granted, this is also coming from a guy who owns two antennas and a Tablo, so once again always paying for the latest and greatest TV tech isn't my strong suit!
ReplyDeleteI don't have a TV at all (just a giant computer monitor that I mostly just use for work these days), but my parents' TV is a Vizio too! It's actually the only flat-screen TV they've ever had, since they bought it sometime around 2009 and it's still working well enough for them (after they had to get it replaced twice during the warranty period, but that's a different story). I feel the same way about smart TVs, plus I don't use any sort of streaming services, so I just stick to my laptop screen most of the time!
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