Saturday, February 23, 2008

Logos on TV Sets

Last month, I looked at the "bugs" television channels put on the screen to be sure I am always aware of the kindly souls offering the programming.

TV manufacturers, too, don't want me to forget whose brand I own. They prefer to put their logo in a way that contrasts with what is around it. Phillips, Toshiba, and Sharp, for example, put their logos either in white or silver against a black background, or in black against a silver background:






Panasonic, at least, offers some sets with a silver logo against a silver background, which makes it a tad less obtrusive.




I'd be delighted to find a television set that didn't insist on advertising itself every time I look at it. Does any major manufacturer have such a product?

Monday, February 18, 2008

Creeping Logoism

Logos seem to grow. I have a Marmot down coat, bought about ten years ago, which has an inconspicuous logo that I was happy to tolerate, even though I generally do not like to display product names.



A little later, I bought a Marmot rain jacket. It had the Marmot "M" in an acceptable size. Unfortunately, I lost it. I replaced it with the new version, but now logo creep had struck. It had a white Marmot logo against a black background on the front:



And another on the right shoulder:



And yet a third on the back:



Now I'm a walking advertisement for Marmot, a firm whose clothing I appreciate, but whose unpaid billboard I am not happy to be. Is it my imagination, or are logos becoming more frequent as well as more obnoxious?