So Do I go HDTV or Not?

Cafe Society
1

I just recently changed my old 20year old Toshiba 32" TV in as it finally died. I picked up a wide screen HD ready model which I rather like.

Watching DVD’s is great! The image is som much better and I no longer feel like most of my Pictrure is wasted.

It does seem older programming seems to look a little off, and I’m no fan of the gray bars on the side (Why couldn’t they make those black?)

The question I have is whether to upgrade my satellite box to the HDTV model. It is $17 more a month but is it worth it? Is there that noticible difference that makes the purchace worth while?

How many programs are in HD these days? And will older programs still look like slightly fuzzy?

2

[QUOTE=kingpengvin]
I just recently changed my old 20year old Toshiba 32" TV in as it finally died. I picked up a wide screen HD ready model which I rather like.

Watching DVD’s is great! The image is som much better and I no longer feel like most of my Pictrure is wasted.

It does seem older programming seems to look a little off, and I’m no fan of the gray bars on the side (Why couldn’t they make those black?)

The question I have is whether to upgrade my satellite box to the HDTV model. It is $17 more a month but is it worth it? Is there that noticible difference that makes the purchace worth while?

How many programs are in HD these days? And will older programs still look like slightly fuzzy?
[/QUOTE]

It’s unquestionably worth it.

Lots of programs are in HD these days.

First of all, if you’re a sports fan at all, tons of sports programming is HD.

But, HBO has an HD station, ESPN has 2, Discovery has an HD station. There are stations that are exclusively HD like HDNET, HDNET-Movies, INHD, INHD2, Universal-HD. They show concerts, original programming, sports.

The networks all do a lot of HD programming. While older shows are still typically standard, any new show is in HD (Earl, The Office, American Idol, etc.)

Keep in mind, DVD’s aren’t even HD. They’re better on a widescreen TV for sure. The TVs also allow for the “progressive scan” from your DVD player to work, but they’re still not HD.

3

I have lo-def eyes, so hi-def TV would be rather a waste of money.

4

You may have an HD-Ready TV, which means it can playback HD video, but that doesn’t mean it will display in HD quality. You’re still limited by your TV’s maximum resolution (which may actually be HD, but probably isn’t judging from your description).

So your TV feed need only be digital to get any benefit (widescreen, digital surround audio, etc) and not necessarily be actually HD.

Now, I’m not sure of the nomenclature du jour of TV in the US, and it may be that “HD” is the equivalent of “Digital” in current parlance, in which case… you can ignore my post.

5

I made the switch abut 2 weeks ago and I am loving HDTV. Comcast programs about 40 channels here, but many are pay channels (Showtime, Cinemax, etc), but there are plenty of channels and you can also watch “regular” channels, so there is no down-side.

What surprised me was how much music programming there is, and how good the “science/nature/educational” programming is (not just amazing to watch).

If you like sports, there is nothing but benefit to HDTV, and all Primetime programming on CBS/ABC/NBC/FOX/ESPN/TNT is in HD.

6

[QUOTE=kingpengvin]
I just recently changed my old 20year old Toshiba 32" TV in as it finally died. I picked up a wide screen HD ready model which I rather like.
[/quote]

What type of TV is it and how big is it? I think that all the newer 37" TVs have an HD tuner in them already, as do some of the smaller TVs.

It could be one of two things, either the station sends out the signal that way, one of the Fox stations here does that, or there’s a setting on your TV that will make them black.

First make sure you don’t already get a digital signal. If you do there’s no need to upgrade unless you want too. You might have to ask the company. There are actually two different types of signals, annalog, and digital. Just because something is sent in digital does not mean it’s HD though, but generally it will look a bit better. To answer your question, yes any HD that you see will look a lot different. I’ve had mine for two months now and I still say how nice it looks.

Many of the newer programs are in HD, as are a lot of the sports. Depending on where you live you might be able to buy an antenna, or if you already have one try hooking it up. There is no difference between an HD antenna and a normal antenna because they are the same. That’s how I get my HD since I’m not paying the $80 they want for cable.

If you live near a large city, or anywhere, try here for an antenna. You can also look here for more info about HD, your TV, and your satellite

7

Check your settings options. Mine has the option to watch with gray bars, no bars, or several different strech/zoom combinations to mess with 4x3 pictures to get them to fit 16x9 (some horribly, some aren’t bad).

Like said up post, the network could be sending out that in the signal, in which case you can’t do much about it, but if you’re seeing this on FOX and NBC and CBS, you should be able to change that setting on the TV.

Also, get HD if you have an HD-ready TV. There is no comparason… just… get it.

8

[QUOTE=Eve]
I have lo-def eyes, so hi-def TV would be rather a waste of money.
[/QUOTE]

Same here.

I just can’t see any but the tiniest improvement in the picture.

It ain’t worth the extra dough, IMHO.

9

[QUOTE=Bosda Di’Chi of Tricor]
Same here.

I just can’t see any but the tiniest improvement in the picture.

It ain’t worth the extra dough, IMHO.
[/QUOTE]

I can’t imagine what your corrected vision is like. Even my dementing parents are astonished by the clarity and presence of the HD picture. In fact, everyone I have ever spoken to has recognized the superiority of the HDTV over regular TV but have provided practical or cost arguments against buying one.

Lack of improvement in picture, however, needs validation.

FYI: I moved my Sony 32" Wega Flat-screen non-HD TV to my bedroom, and this is one of the best tube-TVs made. However, it seems like a pixillated mess when I watch it after watching something on the HD Plasma.

10

What I purchased was a Toshiba 34HF85C. It is a CRT. It is HD compatible and has settings and input for for 1080i

I have Satellite so they offer a package for the HD upgrade. Now I have to make sure I want to go the next step.

11

grumble Stupid apartment complex having a stupid deal with a stupid cable company that doesn’t have HD … grumble

12

In my experience, HD cable is definitely worth the extra cost. My cable company offers a box which has a DVR that is capable of recording and playing back in HD, which is a boon to me, since most of my TV-watching is timeshifted.

13

You must have a plasma. They still have minor burn-in issues. The gray bars are there to give an average level of usage to that area of the screen while it’s not being used. Otherwise, if it was black that area of the screen wouldn’t be used, and over time when you watched widescreen content the sides would be brighter.

14

[QUOTE=interface2x]
grumble Stupid apartment complex having a stupid deal with a stupid cable company that doesn’t have HD … grumble
[/QUOTE]

You have to have some sort of HD cable box because cable scrambles their digital signal. You can get an HD TV and standard cable, what I have, and still watch crap TV. Unless you mean the complex pays for your cable as well and you can’t upgrade.

Then again you could get lucky like me and when searching for digital cable channels without the box picked up a couple. But you didn’t hear that from me.

15

If your HDTV has HDMI inputs and the DVD player has HDMI outputs, that’s definitely the way to go. I tried the most expensive Component (PR, PB, Y) cables I could find and then tried the HDMI cable. Huge difference. HDMI is much better for DVD viewing.

16

I was astonished (and gratified) at the difference between an HD and a regular (digital) picture because it confirmed for me that I wasn’t pissing money away. Seriously, I almost have too much definition–it’s very obvious when scenes are shot before a green screen; make-up looks very theatrical and dramatic. I can see individual pebbles on the infield of Fenway Park ferchrissake.

17

[QUOTE=interface2x]
grumble Stupid apartment complex having a stupid deal with a stupid cable company that doesn’t have HD … grumble
[/QUOTE]
<boggle>

What the hell kind of cable company hasn’t made a move to HD yet? Did they strike a desk with Big Al’s Cable Company or something?

18

Getting our 32" LCD HDTV has made having the Xbox360 worthwhile. All the new games (that aren’t just straight ports of older games) are teh sexy.

19

[QUOTE=Trunk]
Keep in mind, DVD’s aren’t even HD. They’re better on a widescreen TV for sure. The TVs also allow for the “progressive scan” from your DVD player to work, but they’re still not HD.
[/QUOTE]

Well they do make HD-DVDs now, but you’ll need a new HD-DVD player. And soon there will be blue-ray discs, which are also HD.

20

[QUOTE=kingpengvin]
The question I have is whether to upgrade my satellite box to the HDTV model. It is $17 more a month but is it worth it? Is there that noticible difference that makes the purchace worth while?

How many programs are in HD these days? And will older programs still look like slightly fuzzy?
[/QUOTE]
YES! Worth it. I still remember the first time I saw a football game in HD Its amazing. You see the steam coming out of each lineman’s facemask…it’s incredible.

However your last question is correct to. It then bugs the hell out of you watching programs NOT in HD.

Hell, my friend ended up watching the Home and Garden channel for hours and hours just because it was in HD and watching UFC in analog bugged him.