I made an exciting discovery Saturday night, when I accidentally set a bottle down on top of the TV remote that I’ve had FOR TWO YEARS — I have Picture in Picture.
Now, of course, I want to know who (else) uses PIP, when, and how often. I think I’ll only invoke it when I’m watching one movie in its entirety, but need to see one scene of another. (Pictured, for example, is the moment that I pressed Swap so that I could enjoy the end of Rudy, while Die Hard moved, briefly, to the small box.) I suppose I could also see PIP coming in handy during the Summer Olympics, when I’ll want to keep an eye out for gymnastics, diving, and synchronized swimming coverage while not sitting through wrestling. You?
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It’s actually really useful when there are two sports games on that no one really cares about watching but would like to get a vague idea about the score every once and a while.
I use my picture in picture on an almost daily basis. I play video games on the big picture, and then keep the TV on, with sound, on the little picture. It’s quite useful.
Super-useful during commercial breaks. Say you’re watching House, it goes to commercial, but you want to flip through other channels without missing a moment of sardonic wit. Boom–PiP to the rescue!
When you have multiple devices hooked up to a screen, you can use PiP to play tekken 2 while watching porn on the main sceren.
My parents have what they call “PIP”, but in actuality it’s just two TVs that they keep on at the same time so that they can watch the Phillies (or what ever sporting event is on) while at the same time enjoy Jeopardy or Wheel of Fortune. Now i enjoy PIP, but that is just plain ridiculous.
My PIP is included on my DVR box from Time Warner Cable. I just used it this past weekend to watch the Astros and Rangers ballgames that were on at the same time.
For me, it’s when it involves sports, mostly. Usually sports I’m only marginally watching. That way I can monitor when it comes back from commercial while catching a few minutes of something else I’m not really invested in. (The Olympics are going to make it really, really fun to use.)
Because I sometimes have trouble keeping my attention on one thing, I used to use PIP all the time – TV show in one box, casual-style video game in the other. Unfortunately, our current TV doesn’t have PIP.
woohoo, go phils!!! yeah. i used to use PIP all the time, but it doesn’t work anymore in the sense that i am not able to watch two tv shows at the same time, due to my cable provider. i wish i still had it. i loved that thing.
Right now (and same tomorrow and wedn) there are 2 euro soccer games at the same time. The outcome of one game impacts the other, so I use PIP (which I discovered on my remote about 5 seconds after receiving it). I’ll swap to watch a goal replay.
I use it all of the time!!
I usually use it during commercial breaks, but I have been known to use it while watching 2 soaps. Put closed captioning on one screen, put the volume on the other and you can literally watch and comprehend both programs at the same time.
Check your PIP because you may be able to change the size of the PIP screen to 1/2 screen, or corner of screen or 1 large whole picture with pip small on the side.
My name does say tvobsessed, doesn’t it??
Mostly use PiP when the show we’re watching is on commercial (a newly-coined word in our house – “pipswap” – means the original show is back, and the remote controller needs to switch back. We also use it to watch two sports games at a time – works great for football, but it drives my husband nuts.
I use PIP to watch something on regular TV and something I have DVRd. While the regular show is on commercials, I pull up the DVR show and put hte regular show in the corner, when it comes back from commericial I “pipswap” (great word)back to the regular TV show.
Okay…I’ll admit that I totally forgot we have PIP until I read this post. I usually just use the jump/back button to go back and forth when I’m interested in two shows at once or just DVR one and watch it later.
I CAN’T do it! It makes me so mad! We even HAVE an HD tv and It STILL DOESN’T WORK (Tragedy of my life, if you can’t tell)
I use PIP to watch Cubs games and then whatever’s on during the evening. Or Bulls games. Or Bears games. I guess there’s a pattern there… Go Cubbies!
I knew I loved you people — you’re Phillies fans! I use my PIP to keep track of Phils games while watching other stuff.
Charlie, it’s ok. I like the Cubbies too.
I just got a new HDTV a few months ago, and it doesn’t have PIP. bummer! I used to love it! I’d play Fight Night Round3 on the small screen and watch tv shows on the big screen. With commercial breaks, I’d swap the picture. It’s the perfect invention for the at home multi-tasker.
PIP is a totally useless feature, have never used it once.
What you guys at EW’s PopWatch should learn is that there’s this thing called sports, and sometimes they’re shown on TV, and a lot of people watch them, and since they’re live and semi-unpredictable, sometimes crazy things like Picture-in-Picture are necessary to keep track.
PIP is useful to catch an upcoming story on CNN or MSNBC without watching the extra crap.
Back when I had it I used to use it to flip channels while whatever I was watching was on commercial or, like Debsa, use it to wait for the news story I’m actually interested in.
My parents would use it but the box Comcast uses for digital cable makes the PIP function on the TV useless.
Did I miss something? Is Picture in Picture a new technology? I remember being excited about it like ten years ago as a kid but haven’t heard anything about it until this morning….
No PIP – I don’t even have a ‘last channel’ button on my new remote! I shouldn’t have to remember which station I was on.
I’d personally use the PIP for the Olympics to get around all the NBC Sports personalities and their novelettes around the 5 athletes they tell us we need to care about… and I am going to watch wrestling!
My parents are PIP-addicts, especially when Hockey and Basketball are on. I don’t have PIP, and using the remote to scroll through the channel list is nothing like flipping channels in the pipwindow. Is there an HDTV out there with PIP, or has it disappeared because of people like Nathan?
Good point about using it for the Olympics. The last time I remember firing up the PIP was for Live Earth, which was simulcast over three NBC networks, I think.
Ha! It’s me and you, Mandi, with our gloriously exciting Saturday nights. I too was watching Rudy and Die Hard, but I, unfortuntely, don’t have PIP so I was flipping back and forth old school. Still — pretty great night for movies on Saturday!
I’m going to have to investigate the PIP at home… perfect for Olympics coverage!
I use it when I am stuck watching a show live and want to see something else during commercials. OR during results shows when I don’t want to watch the filler, but still want to see the performances.