Convenience > Performance?

This is a question that I've never had to think twice about. Whether it's a television or a sound system, I've always aimed for the best possible performance for the amount of money I had to spare. 

Interestingly, over the past number of years, I've noticed a significant drop in people purchasing performance products in favour of convenience. 

Take plasma tv for example. Panasonic, by far the largest advocate for plasma tv left in the world, recently announced they were ending plasma production in March of 2014. 

This was a moment I knew was coming, but wasn't prepared for. 

Statistically, it makes sense. I mean for every one plasma tv sold, five LED tv's have walked out the door, with that number increasing everyday. 

Before I continue, I should clarify, I am a huge fan of plasma technology and I feel as though it has had a rather unfair stigma plaguing its name.

Going on though, LED tv's have very much taken over and it makes me wonder, is it the convenience of using less power? Or more that a large quantity of homes are now being built with "open plan" living areas that can't accommodate a reflective screen? Or is it that buyers are simply uneducated about these things and are going off what their mate has told them who has spent the greater part of 10 minutes online googling reviews? I'm not sure.

Another part of the marketplace that been affected by this phenomena is audio. 

Why if I had a dollar for every time someone asked about wireless speakers, I think I'd own my own Hi-Fi magazine! If you understand the technology behind speakers and amplifiers, you might understand just why this concept is mind boggling. 

If you take a traditional stereo setup, it consists of an amplifier wired into speakers. Occasionally there may be a CD player or a turntable, or more commonly nowadays, a DAC (Digital to Analogue Converter).

The amplifier will generally have a rather large transformer in it. This is to generate current to drive the speakers with. What does current need to travel through? A conductor, copper. The better the amplifier, the better it drives the speakers. 

What this means is, "wireless" speakers need to have an amplifier built into them. Now, my own stereo amp at home has a transformer in it that would be upwards of 20cm in diameter, and up to 10cm tall. Where can you fit a transformer that big in a wireless speaker? 

The answer is you can't. This means it can't produce as much power, thereby not driving the speaker as well. 

Granted, I can't stream wirelessly to my stereo at home, but I have a media PC connected through a DAC which houses my entire cd collection anyway, so I'm not really phased.

I'm not saying everyone should go out and drop $10K on a stereo, but just be aware that by prioritising convenience, you're directly limiting the level of performance you'll get as a result.