TV shows have been known to over-simplify
The ETF website has loads of information about early color, and that's a great place to learn more:
http://www.earlytelevision.org/color.html
At yesterday's ETF convention, you could see both types of early color TV -- color-wheel and all-electronic -- operating in the same room. Just for fun, I took some snapshots of each example. Without getting into fine points, which experts can discuss for hours, there's no doubt the average person could look at either type of TV and say, "Hey, nice color."
These photos were taken without a tripod while a DVD was playing (i.e., not paused), so all of the screens are somewhat blurry. This is not a lab setting, so don't judge the color by my terrible camera, which auto-adjusts everything in several bad ways.
Of course, the DVD was produced with the NTSC standard, not the CBS color standard, so all that the photos really prove is that either kind of TV can display an enjoyable color picture.
The color wheels were operating in front of ordinary 10" black and white TVs of the day. The smaller CBS color wheel uses a magnifying lens and requires a separate electronic box not shown in the photo.
CBS Color Converter:
Col-R-Tel kit wheel:
RCA CT-100 all-electronic TV (with newly rebuilt 15GP22 CRT):
Any scheme with a color wheel had obvious scalability problems. Look at the size of the Col-R-Tel wheel for a 10" TV. Scaled up for a 21" TV, it would reach the ceiling.
The CT-100 had been hastily set up to demonstrate a freshly rebuilt 15GP22 CRT that arrived from France via air freight at the last minute. It has more convergence and purity issues than a fully dialed-in CT-100.
I think the deal-breaker for the CBS system was lack of compatibility with existing black and white broadcasts. Tens of millions of black and white TVs had been sold. Owners of color sets could not watch any black and white programs. Owners of black and white TVs could not see any programs broadcast in color. Consider today's satellite radio, another commercial flop.
And look how far we've come! Here are two photos from the flat screen TV in my Columbus hotel room.
Game show:
Local digital broadcast breaking up during rain shower:
Phil Nelson