Predicta TV's

[Cybrvanr]

Check this out! A company called Telstar electronics is making custom reproductions of the old Philco TV's. They have color CRT's, A/V inputs, remote controls and 181 channel cable ready tuners in them. Perfect for that mid-century home!

http://www.predicta.com/index.shtml

 

[frigilux]

What an excellent idea. They're retro-beautiful!

 

[mrcleanjeans]

me thinks the Jetsons or the B52s would have one.

 

[Designgeek]

And appparently they're ready for the new TV signal standards.

OK, this is the coolest TV I've seen in a darn long time.

The website hints they're expensive (doesn't quote specific prices), but that's to be expected from the scale on which these are produced. Anyone know what the actual price range is?

 

[Versatronic]

Nothing in stock

I talked to these guys on the phone years ago. Their prices are insane. Plus you have to get on a waiting list. It takes like a year for you to get your TV. It's faster and cheaper to get an original and rig it up.

 

[toggleswitch]

Awesome site.
Thanks for sharing it.
More to aspire to that I can't afford. LOL

(Trust me, fast and cheap is not always the way to go).

 

[polkanut]

You must remember though, these lovely TV's are made here in the USA, and in my lovely state of Wisconsin no less.

 

[Versatronic]

If you have the jack...

I'm not trying to dissaude anyone from ordering a TV from these guys. If you have the jack and you're willing to wait, then go for it. I'm just saying that you can get a non-working vintage Predicta, put in new electronics yourself or have your local repair man do it for you in less time and for less money. There's a guy on-line who shows a step by step project he undertook to put new electronics in an old Predicta and he now uses the Predicta for his computer monitor. If you google for the site, it should be pretty easy to find. It's a really interesting read.

 

[jasonl]

Try getting a REAL Predicta TV from the 50s in perfect working order!

Hey, if you want a retro TV this would be it. You could watch Lucy, Honymooners, and all those cool old shows. BUT you won't get the "fuzzy" look and the warm tube sound of a real vintage TV. It will have the pic and sound of your typical modern TV.

My 58 Zenith (RIP) as imperfect as it was, I loved it because of the not-so-perfect 50s TV resolution and the awesome AWESOME AWESOME tube audio. God, the Beatles on Ed Sullivan never sounded better than on that old tv.

 

[tomturbomatic]

I hope they solved the heat dispersal problem. The original sets burned out picture tubes one after another because of the unique housing for the picture tube, according to several TV collectors and fixers.

 

[kevinpreston8]

I will post pics when I get home

Guys,

I have had a Telstar for two years now. I have the Holiday in Tuxedo black.

The company bought the legal name, and make some of the knobs off the original molds.

Obviously, they make more designs than original, and in different colors available also.

Unfortunately, my little boy broke the knob off...have to get another, and part of the script. :-(. However, this is a stunning set. I have had no problems with it. Our VCR and DVD players are hooked up to it.

The unit is actually slightly larger than the original, but everything is in scale. This is because the screen is slightly larger. I have this on display in the same room as my original. It has gotten heavy, heavy use, and it is on all day. I believe it has Philips internals (I would have to go look) but it has all the connections. I kept the original remote (nothing special) put away and use a large generic remote, everything works fine.

While these are expensive, you are getting a piece of furniture, just like the old days. They are hand build and finished. There is a waiting list as they are way popular. This worked to my advantage. They let me pay $25 here and $200 there, I think the TV was a couple of thousand.

When we got it, it was crated amazingly well, and the guy guided me through unpacking it over the phone. Total great customer service.

While it is not cheap, it is worth every penny, and its heavy use in my house with kids speaks for well for it.

I am out of town, will post pics on return.

 

[kevinpreston8]

Here are mine

Here is my original 21" Predicta Holiday.

I bought this about 9 years ago for $300 from a local guy from a newspaper ad, believe it or not. It still works.

 

[kevinpreston8]

Here is the Telstar model

Very happy with it!

Picture is much brighter, digital flash washed it out a bit. The finish is like a fine black piano. It was called Tuxedo Black.

 

[launderess]

Did Someone Want A Predicta Television?

Pipe:

Launderess

Pardon Our Interruption...