After binge watching ‘House of Cards’ Season 3 on Netflix, I found myself focusing less on the political intrigue of Frank Underwood’s perilous presidency and more on the tech in the characters’ hands and offices.
Why does everyone in this universe seem to love Nokia’s Windows Phone devices? How can it be that only one politician is still packing a BlackBerry? And what did Samsung do to ensure people only buy their TVs?
So, without further ado, here’s the complete rundown of every piece of tech that shows up this season. Light spoiler warning if you’re the sort of person who can deduce a lot from screenshots of TVs, phones and many, many MacBooks.
Chapter 27
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11.39 The first of many Samsung TVs makes it appearance, showing Frank in all his presidential pomp.
16.30 Claire Underwood gives Doug Stamper the gift of…a Nokia Windows Phone.
33.68 Another Windows Phone moment as Doug gets a little desperate.
42.00 They even have MacBooks in the situation room…
54.21 …and a Microsoft Surface.
Chapter 28
03.30 Our first glimpse of Frank’s iMac and another Samsung TV in his private study. The Oval Office seems to be tech free besides an old-school desk phone.
08:31 This Samsung Galaxy has bad news about Claire.
10.49 More screen time for that iMac.
12.30 Another Samsung TV just rubbing the drama in.
17:10 Frank and the real love of his life, his MacBook Pro.
19.15 Deputy whip Jackie Sharp is also rocking a Windows Phone…
20.50 …but Claire’s got an iPhone 5.
29.35 Chief of Staff Remi Danton and Press Secretary Seth Grayson rocking their tablets in the Oval…
32.34 …and Seth’s firmly in the Samsung camp when it comes to his PC.
42.40 Finally, the first big plug for the Autocue.
Chapter 29
12.47 Meanwhile, at the FBI, it’s all about dual Dell monitor setups.
29.10 Doug might have been converted to Windows Phone but he’s still a MacBook Pro man. Correction: It looks like Doug’s got a Chromebook.
36.53 Pretend Putin, President Petrov’s phone of choice is unclear.
Chapter 30
09.03 Claire’s on her iPhone again, doing some diplomacy in fluent French.
13.55 – 13.54 This is definitely not a fake OS, definitely…
23.20 Funky secure pseudo-Skype and an unidentified laptop in the White House situation room.
23.37 More tablet action.
23.50 And Claire using, yes, you guessed it, a Samsung Smart TV to do her teleconferencing.
23.52 Not to be left out, Frank’s primary challenger Heather Dunbar is also packing a Nokia Lumia.
Chapter 31
05.59 Guess what? Doug’s physiotherapist also has a Samsung TV.
08.40 And Remi’s got an iMac too.
15.00 Frank playing Monument Valley on his iPad, an incident that actually becomes a plot point, with him calling out the game by name.
19.45 Woah, there. Hold on a minute, this guy’s actually using a BlackBerry.
24.14 The foreign affairs consultant has a Samsung Galaxy tablet…
24.16 …and yes, just for a change, a Samsung TV.
38.32 Jackie’s following the trend with an iMac in her office.
47.20 Frank on an actual car phone.
Chapter 32
01.47 The first MacBook Air of the episode…
03.16 …and there’s Frank’s trusty MacBook Pro facing off with a Dell on Airforce One.
46.20 Over at the FBI, they’re stubbornly refusing to use Google Maps.
Chapter 33
08.13 That poor MacBook Air has to play witness to yet more marital strife.
13.20 Frank has a happier time with his MacBook Pro.
30.00 And again, the MacBook Air suffers in silence while the Underwoods have a tense breakfast.
Chapter 34
02.03 A nice big cameo for Microsoft Word and Cambria’s a fine choice of font.
11.45 Without ‘House of Cards’ to watch, Doug Stamper spends his evening watching CCTV footage.
12.00 And, oh look, there’s his Windows Phone again…
12.08 …of course, it’s Dunbar calling on her massive phone.
21.50 Meanwhile, Jackie’s on her phone, multitasking.
37.59 Every hotel room in the ‘House of Cards’ universe has a Samsung TV.
Chapter 35
04.50 Curiously, this explosion isn’t being displayed on a Samsung TV.
08.30 More bad news but another good shot of a Samsung telly.
15.30 Stamper must be bummed, it feels like Dunbar’s the only one who ever calls him.
23:21 It’s a rare MacBook Pro aerial shot and no, Apple is not going to replace that one under warranty.
47.14 This guy’s an author and he uses a Dell. There is a limit to suspension of disbelief, you know.
48.47 As if his MacBook hadn’t suffered enough with all those awkward silences, Frank’s gone back to his trusty old Underwood typewriter.
Chapter 36
16.02 Time for another Samsung TV to do some expositional work.
20:53 Another Russian with a mystery phone.
27.34 Airforce One’s sure got a lot of big tellies.
Chapter 37
04.00 Hang on, those dimly lit scenes earlier in the season were lying to us. Doug’s been using an Acer all along!
06.13 Shocking scenes of gadget abuse as Stamper drowns his Acer and three phones, including a BlackBerry he’d been keeping pretty quiet about up until now.
18.42 And now he’s got a Lenovo Thinkpad from somewhere.
19.09 Luckily there’s time for a long lingering shot of the Samsung smart TV’s interface to push the drama forwards.
34.19 For some wild reason, Claire’s watching a television made by LG.
34.27 In case you forgot that she owns an iPhone, here it is in a still from what would quite possibly be one of the most unsettling Apple ads ever.
Chapter 38
14.48 Important update on Doug Stamper’s consumer electronic preferences – he also has a Samsung microwave.
14.55 And it looks like his Windows Phone survived his rampage of gadget destruction.
30:20 More scenes from the most harrowing iPhone ad ever.
42.08 And now, some more quality time with a Samsung Galaxy tablet.
Chapter 39
07:00 One PC, make unclear, used under duress.
25:40 Frank, now shunning the car phone.
Conclusion
So, what have we learned about technology from ‘House of Cards’ Season 3? Well, Samsung really wants you to buy a smart TV, people in fiction are sold on Windows Phone and you definitely shouldn’t lend Doug Stamper any of your gadgets.
Did we miss anything or misidentify a gadget? Let us know in the comments!
Image credits: Netflix
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