Buying a TV

Marco: Hello, English learners. Welcome back to EnglishPod. My name is Marco.

Katarina: And my name is Katarina.

Marco: So Katarina, you've been shopping a lot lately.

Katarina: I have.

Marco: And this dialogue or this lesson today is about one of my favorite pieces of furniture, maybe appliances that I've bought recently, and it's a TV.

Katarina: All right. So I'd even go for electronics with that one. The electronics department is somewhere you like to hang out.

Marco: Uh-huh. I mean, I think every guy loves, you know, like a big screen TV and a home theater system. So you just like go deaf after watching.

Katarina: Why is that? Is bigger really better when it comes to like a 70 inch TV?

Marco: Well, I don't know. I think, yeah, the whole experience of just seeing this movie on this huge TV and like having all the sound and I don't know, it's just something about that or watching a football game with your buddies and you can actually watch.

Katarina: Oh, fun. Okay, that I can appreciate. But we've got a couple of great words for you. We're going to preview in today's vocabulary preview.

Marco: Vocabulary Preview.

Marco: Okay, so on vocabulary preview today, we're going to be looking at two words. The first one is "to appreciate".

Katarina: All right. So this basically means to like.

Marco: Yeah, you appreciate someone. But in this context, to enjoy or take advantage of something. So...

Katarina: Maybe you hear this with a couple, two people who are fighting and the girl says to the guy, "you don't appreciate me." So he doesn't really care about her in the way that she wants him to. Or you could say this about a TV, for example, "I can't appreciate my PS3, my great, awesome console, my gaming system, because my TV is not good enough."

Marco: Or big enough.

Katarina: Or big enough. Or big enough. So this means that it could be a lot better if I just bought a better TV.

Marco: Right. And if you buy a better TV, then you basically are upgrading or "to upgrade".

Katarina: Okay, so this verb "to upgrade" means to go from something that's okay to something that's better.

Marco: Exactly. So in previous lessons, we've seen "to get a complimentary upgrade", for example, on a flight or in a hotel.

Katarina: I like that. Well, you can also get an upgrade on a computer. You say, "well, my computer's from 1994. I really need to get an upgrade."

Marco: Yeah, for sure. So to upgrade. Now, we're going to be listening to this dialogue for the first time, we're going to be buying a TV. So let's listen.

Woman: Seriously, I don't know why we need to get a new TV.

说真的，我搞不懂我们为什么需要买一台新电视。

Man: Honey, I told you already. I can't appreciate the graphics level and detail of the games on my PlayStation 3 on our old TV.

亲爱的，我跟你说过了。用我们那台旧电视，我根本体验不到 PS3 游戏的画质水平和细节。

Salesman: Good afternoon, folks, how can I be of service today?

下午好，两位！今天有什么我可以效劳的？

Man: I'm looking to upgrade to a newer, bigger television set.

我想换一台更新、更大的电视机。

Salesman: You've come to the right place. What size are you looking for?

您来对地方了。您想找多大尺寸的？

Woman: Just a normal size TV for a living room.

就客厅用的普通尺寸电视就行。

Salesman: I see. Well, this set here is on sale. It's a 46 inch HDTV screen and it has all the works: three HDMI connectors, USB, VGA and S video ports. It even has a DVI port so you can hook up your PC or laptop. This is without a doubt the complete home theater experience.

我懂了。嗯，旁边这款正在打折。这是一台 46 英寸的高清电视（HDTV），功能应有尽有：三个 HDMI 接口、USB、VGA 和 S 端子接口。它甚至还有一个 DVI 接口，方便您连接台式电脑或笔记本。这绝对是顶级的家庭影院体验。

Man: This is exactly what I need. Can you imagine watching movies or playing video games on this thing?

这正是我需要的！你能想象在这玩意儿上面看电影或者打游戏有多爽吗？

Woman: Honey, I think it's a bit too big. I don't even think it will fit in our living room.

亲爱的，我觉得这有点太大了。我觉得我们客厅甚至放不下它。

Salesman: Not to worry. We will deliver and install it in your home. It comes with a wall mount so you can just hang it on the wall like a picture.

不用担心。我们会送货上门并免费安装。它配有墙壁挂架，您可以像挂画一样把它挂在墙上。

Man: This is great. How much will this set me back?

太棒了。这得花我多少钱？

Salesman: Lucky for you, this is the last one we have in stock, so it's half off.

您运气真好，这是我们库存里的最后一台了，所以打半折。

Man: I'll take it.

我要了！

Katarina: All right, so I'm going to have to defer to you, Marco, on some of these words in today's language takeaway because they're all about TV specifics.

Marco: Language takeaway.

Marco: All right, the first word that we're going to be looking at is "graphics", the graphics level.

Katarina: All right, so you might have heard this before with the phrase graphic designer, someone who designs images. But in this case, we're talking about graphics, so the way things appear on your TV. So basically the pictures, right? So he wanted to appreciate the graphics of his PlayStation 3 better, and that's why he wanted a new TV. All right, or he could say, "my computer has amazing graphics." It means games are really fun because they look good. Or "this game has amazing graphics", so the game has places or scenery that looks really, really real.

Marco: All right, so graphics. But some kinds of TVs are made to provide those wonderful graphics, and those are called HDTV.

Katarina: Right, and HDTV, or that's an acronym for high definition television.

Marco: All right, and I heard some actors and actresses were complaining about HDTV because the picture quality is so good that you can see all of the little problems on their face, the little wrinkles and the pimples and the scars. So be careful because one day we're going to be able to see way too much.

Katarina: Exactly. So on high definition television, that's basically what you get is better definition, better level of graphics. So more pixels per inch, you can see a lot more clarity.

Marco: Right, so an HDTV. The next thing we're talking about is actually kind of related to the back part of your TV where you plug things in. Sometimes it's on the side, sometimes it's on the back. Well, there are different names for different kinds of plugs. So today we're going to talk about two of those. One of them is USB.

Katarina: Right, this TV has a USB port, which basically stands for universal serial bus.

Marco: All right, so a port is a place where you plug something in. Your computer has a lot of ports as well. But USB is maybe more common for people who have iPods or computers because this is how we normally connect things to our computers. So in this case, this television, you could connect maybe your iPod and reproduce videos or pictures onto the TV.

Katarina: Awesome. Or in the second case, we have a DVI port. So DVI, you're going to have to tell me about this one, Marco, because I'm not so sure.

Marco: Well, a DVI is basically a digital video interface. So basically you can connect your computer to the TV and see what's on your screen.

Katarina: Nice. And so if you have a bunch of movies stored on your computer, you can just plug it into the TV and watch. Or you can even navigate the internet on a big screen TV.

Marco: Cool. All right. So what are these three HDMI connectors?

Katarina: All right. Well, this is a new technology. Basically, you know how before you used to get your DVD player, your VHS, and you had three cables, two for sound and one for video?

Marco: Yeah, the red, yellow, and white cables.

Katarina: Exactly. So with this new type of cable or technology, with one cable, it takes all the information to the TV. So just one cable for everything.

Marco: Oh, nice. The problem is I always used to put the wrong cable in the wrong port, so I'd have the red cable in the yellow port, and then I'd say, "where's the video? I can't see. All I can do is listen."

Katarina: Yeah, it happens. So with this, now it's easy. And well, it's a little bit more organized, because I remember I used to have a TV and I had a lot of different things connected to it. It was just this big spider web in the back with all these cables. So an HDMI, high definition multimedia interface connector.

Marco: And what else do we have?

Katarina: Well, the last thing we're talking about is actually the place to put your TV. So a lot of people now are putting their TVs on walls like paintings, because these TVs are so thin. So we call this a wall mount. So a mount, "to mount" something is also a verb, right?

Marco: Yeah, it means to put something up or to hang something up. So many people like to mount their trophies to show off.

Katarina: Very good. So this is what we're doing with the TV. We're going to mount it on the wall like a painting.

Marco: Cool. So those are our words for language takeaway. Let's take another listen to today's dialogue. We're going to slow it down this time and really figure out what's going on.

Woman: Seriously, I don't know why we need to get a new TV.

说真的，我搞不懂我们为什么需要买一台新电视。

Man: Honey, I told you already. I can't appreciate the graphics level and detail of the games on my PlayStation 3 on our old TV.

亲爱的，我跟你说过了。用我们那台旧电视，我根本体验不到 PS3 游戏的画质水平和细节。

Salesman: Good afternoon, folks. How can I be of service today?

下午好，两位！今天有什么我可以效劳的？

Man: I'm looking to upgrade to a newer, bigger television set.

我想换一台更新、更大的电视机。

Salesman: You've come to the right place. What size are you looking for?

您来对地方了。您想找多大尺寸的？

Woman: Just a normal sized TV for a living room.

就客厅用的普通尺寸电视就行。

Salesman: I see. Well, this set here is on sale. It's a 46 inch HDTV screen and it has all the works: three HDMI connectors, USB, VGA, and S-video ports. It even has a DVI port so you can hook up your PC or laptop. This is without a doubt the complete home theater experience.

我懂了。嗯，旁边这款正在打折。这是一台 46 英寸的高清电视，功能应有尽有：三个 HDMI 接口、USB、VGA 和 S 端子接口。它甚至还有一个 DVI 接口，方便您连接台式电脑或笔记本。这绝对是顶级的家庭影院体验。

Man: This is exactly what I need. Can you imagine watching movies or playing video games on this thing?

这正是我需要的！你能想象在这玩意儿上面看电影或者打游戏有多爽吗？

Woman: Honey, I think it's a bit too big. I don't even think it will fit in our living room.

亲爱的，我觉得这有点太大了。我觉得我们客厅甚至放不下它。

Salesman: Not to worry. We will deliver and install it in your home. It comes with a wall mount so you can just hang it on the wall like a picture.

不用担心。我们会送货上门并免费安装。它配有墙壁挂架，您可以像挂画一样把它挂在墙上。

Man: This is great. How much will this set me back?

太棒了。这得花我多少钱？

Salesman: Lucky for you, this is the last one we have in stock so it's half off.

您运气真好，这是我们库存里的最后一台了，所以打半折。

Man: I'll take it.

我要了！

Marco: All right. So now we're going to be taking a look at three different phrases that we saw in this dialogue in Fluency Builder.

Katarina: Fluency Builder.

Katarina: All right. This first phrase is definitely one that I use a lot. We can talk about food. We can talk about electronics. We can talk about most different things. But the phrase here is "the works". He's getting the works.

Marco: All right. That means any option he could get, any possibility, he wants it all.

Katarina: Right. So if you're getting a new car, for example, right, you're getting the high definition sound system. You're getting nice tires, leather seats. You're getting the works.

Marco: All right. Or if you're getting a hamburger and you want the works, you're getting it with cheese and lettuce and tomato and pepper and bacon and you know, it means every option you're getting it all. The works.

Katarina: So I think this word is so versatile that we should maybe listen to some more examples.

Example 1: The bridegroom was wearing a morning suit, top hat, gloves, the works.

例句 1：新郎穿戴着晨礼服、高顶丝帽、手套，全套齐备。

Example 2: He spent over $10,000 on his home theater system. He got all the works.

例句 2：他在家庭影院系统上花了 1 万多美元。他配齐了所有顶配全套设备。

Example 3: I bought a new car with all the works, magnesium rims, custom paint and leather seats.

例句 3：我买了一辆全套顶配的新车，带有镁合金轮毂、定制车漆和真皮座椅。

Katarina: So now that we've seen the works on the home theater system, he needs to hook it up.

Marco: All right. So this is an important part and a very exciting part of a new purchase. So when you buy something, you have to hook it up. That means you have to plug things together.

Katarina: Okay. So we plug things into the wall for electricity, but also hook up maybe those, those cords you were talking about earlier, that HDMI connector, that's called hooking up or connecting. So you would hook up your DVD player to your television.

Marco: All right. I could ask you, "did you hook up those new speakers to your big TV yesterday?"

Katarina: Very good. Right. So to connect, it's another way of saying to connect. And finally, the big event when you're buying something is the end when you have to actually pay. And this guy's a little bit worried that the things he wants cost a lot of money. So he asks a really great question.

Marco: Yeah. He said, "how much will this set me back?"

Katarina: Okay. This sounds a little weird at first, because you could just say, "how much will this cost?" But he's speaking in a very colloquial way, very familiar. And he says, "how much will this set me back?"

Marco: Right. So how much will this cost me? So how much am I actually going to spend? So it's just a different way of saying "how much does it cost?" But it's like you say, more colloquial. It's a lot more native-like.

Katarina: Exactly. And so if you're writing your paper, you don't want to write this, "this will set you back $500" in economics. But we'd say this in spoken language in our normal daily lives with friends. So why don't we listen to a couple more examples of "set me back".

Example 1: This unexpected expense is going to set us back a couple thousand dollars.

例句 1：这笔意外的开支要花掉我们几千美元。

Example 2: That fancy dinner at the restaurant last night really set us back.

例句 2：昨晚在餐厅吃的那顿高级大餐真让我们破费不少。

Example 3: I feel guilty about buying this coat. It set me back over $300.

例句 3：买这件外套让我很有罪恶感。它花了我 300 多美元。

Marco: All right. Great. So now that we've taken a look at those great phrases and with some good examples, why don't we listen to this dialogue one last time.

Woman: Seriously, I don't know why we need to get a new TV.

说真的，我搞不懂我们为什么需要买一台新电视。

Man: Honey, I told you already. I can't appreciate the graphics level and detail of the games on my PlayStation 3 on our old TV.

亲爱的，我跟你说过了。用我们那台旧电视，我根本体验不到 PS3 游戏的画质水平和细节。

Salesman: Good afternoon, folks. How can I be of service today?

下午好，两位！今天有什么我可以效劳的？

Man: I'm looking to upgrade to a newer, bigger television set.

我想换一台更新、更大的电视机。

Salesman: You've come to the right place. What size are you looking for?

您来对地方了。您想找多大尺寸的？

Woman: Just a normal size TV for a living room.

就客厅用的普通尺寸电视就行。

Salesman: I see. Well, this set here is on sale. It's a 46 inch HDTV screen and it has all the works: three HDMI connectors, USB, VGA and S video ports. It even has a DVI port so you can hook up your PC or laptop. This is without a doubt, the complete home theater experience.

我懂了。嗯，旁边这款正在打折。这是一台 46 英寸的高清电视，功能应有尽有：三个 HDMI 接口、USB、VGA 和 S 端子接口。它甚至还有一个 DVI 接口，方便您连接台式电脑或笔记本。这绝对是顶级的家庭影院体验。

Man: This is exactly what I need. Can you imagine watching movies or playing video games on this thing?

这正是我需要的！你能想象在这玩意儿上面看电影或者打游戏有多爽吗？

Woman: Honey, I think it's a bit too big. I don't even think it will fit in our living room.

亲爱的，我觉得这有点太大了。我觉得我们客厅甚至放不下它。

Salesman: Not to worry. We will deliver and install it in your home. It comes with a wall mount so you can just hang it on the wall like a picture.

不用担心。我们会送货上门并免费安装。它配有墙壁挂架，您可以像挂画一样把它挂在墙上。

Man: This is great. How much will this set me back?

太棒了。这得花我多少钱？

Salesman: Lucky for you, this is the last one we have in stock so it's half off.

您运气真好，这是我们库存里的最后一台了，所以打半折。

Man: I'll take it.

我要了！

Marco: Okay, so a big TV, I think, I don't know, I think it's just a great thing to have at home. Not to, you know, spend too much time in front of the TV but it's good to sit down and watch a movie.

Katarina: It's nice because now there's so many different things you can do with it. You can hook up your computer, you can buy a projector, you can play your PS3 or your Wii. So I think there's a lot to do and it's just wonderful how great graphics have come in just like the last five years. What do you think about having a television set, for example, in the bathroom?

Marco: I would say it's a really bad idea but I think, well, if I have a bathtub, I think it would be really cool.

Katarina: What about, you know, some people don't like having a television set in their bedroom. I agree with this.

Marco: Why?

Katarina: I agree. Because I think it's really important that you have peace and quiet in your bedroom because it's kind of like, for me, it's an important space where I can just relax and be quiet and I like reading a lot so if I have a TV, maybe I'll watch more TV but I'd much rather read a book before bed.

Marco: True. Yeah, I definitely agree but, you know, I've seen people that have TVs in their living rooms, in their dining rooms, even in their kitchen so they're watching something while they're cooking and even in the bathroom. Like you say, in a bathtub, well, it's nice but some of them I've seen in front of the toilet or something.

Katarina: Oh, no.

Marco: I would say that the one in the kitchen is nice because if you spend a lot of time in the kitchen, you can watch the news while you're cooking or you can actually watch cooking shows and try and practice.

Katarina: Or soap operas.

Marco: Or soap operas. So I guess it depends on the person. It depends on how much you watch TV. But I'm curious to know what our listeners have to say about TVs and big electronics purchases.

Katarina: Right. So come to our website EnglishPod.com. If you have any questions or any doubts regarding the lesson or any suggestions, you can let us know. Otherwise, we'll be there to just talk and practice that English and of course send us your suggestions for future lessons. We love to know what you're interested in learning about.

Marco: All right. We'll see you guys there.

Katarina: All right. Take care.

Marco: Bye.

Katarina: Bye.