Analog or HD? which is the right choice for me? (1 Viewer)

[Keith_R]

Hey all, as some of you may know I'm in a continuing search for a newer and bigger tube Tv than my 7 year old Sony. Originally, my intent had been to get an HD-Ready television but after some more research I'm begining to question if this would be the right choice for me, thus I've come here looking for advice and input.

Here's the situation: as stated above, I would like to upgrade my 20 inch Sony which is aging and isn't exactly built for great DVD performance (though it can still put out a great picture). Aside from being quite small for main viewing it really just lacks the good inputs/outputs for the new digital age such as component or S-Video. I'd been wanting to upgrade to an HDTV now that I've seen prices falling into my price range and the ability to get a new 16:9 set in my grasp. I'm mainly looking to maximize DVD viewing and occasional videogaming while retaining decent cable 4:3 viewing. HDTV looks great to me and shows a lot of promise but after some research in my area I've discovered that my cable company only offers 6 HD channels right now (none of which interest me ). I'm not ready to switch to satellite or Voom so at this point and time my Tv viewing off of this set would be split between standard 4:3 cable and videogames/DVD. I feel as though while DVD's and X-Box games will look incredible on an HDTV that my Tv viewing (which I do more of than DVD's or videogames) would look like crap, basically leaving me in a tough spot for justifying this Tv purchase.

On the other hand, there are analog sets going on the cheap now which while looking far less good than HD and not being in 16:9 will probably fit my needs for most uses of this Tv adequately. I also feel though that purchase of a analog set right now seems redundant with the fact that the FCC deadline looms closer and we are slowly in a digital transition.

What should I do? presented with the above facts should I stay analog or go digital? is an analog set really such a bad choice right now?

Thanks for any advice you can give!

 

[Jim Mcc]

Keith, you say that your cable company only offers 6 HD channels right now, and they don't interest you. What do they offer, and do they offer your locals in HD? Do your locals broadcast in HD yet? There is a lot of HD programming out there on ABC, NBC, CBS, FOX, PBS and you can pick it up with an antenna if your locals are using it.
What I'm getting at is that your cable company may add more HD any time, and you may decide to change your set again if you buy analog now. I think you should buy an "HD ready" set now and be set for the future.

 

[Keith_R]

From what I saw my company offers some of the locals (NBC, CBS,Fox) and than a couple other cable stations like Discovery HD, ESPN, and some thing else which I can't remember. The grand total is about 6 full HD stations, out of those 6 maybe only 1 or 2 really interest me like the movie channels. I see what you're saying about them adding more HD channels any day but I also live in a small town which doesn't show the same growth in stuff like this as a bigger market does.

 

[Harold Wazzu]

I'll tell you what I did for my first real tv purchase. I was lookin for a decent 27" flatscreen tv for $300-$400. I did research for about a month and went to circuit city and walmart to take an upclose look. I decided to go with a brand that isn't really mainstream (Samsung txn2745fp EDTV) costing $399+tax for the following reasons. The picture looked alot smoother than an analog tv, especially close up. It was only $80 more for an extra component input (2 total) and the upgrade from 480i to 480p (It went on sale for $20 cheaper 2 weeks later, so it was actually only $60) I wouldn't be watching hd programming so an EDTV just made sense for me. (But there is supposeably a way to enable 1080i on this set thru the service menu, do a google for this)

So my suggestion is to go with an EDTV, as it's better than analog but not quite hd.

Whatever you decide to do if you are having to choose between a 27" HDTV or a 32" analog, I would go with the larger set.

 

[Jerome Grate]

I don't know what size you are looking for and what space you plan to place this t.v. in, but if you want to get the most out of your set, and make it compatible with future connections, then a HDTV is the best bet for you. Analog t.v.s especially 4:3 are good but with most of them you can't do 480p from you DVD player unless it has a high bandwith to accept the progressive picture. RPTV, is the cheapest, fastest and most competitive way to get into a digital t.v. You have a big choice, CRT, DLP, LCD and LCOS. There's a thread floating around discussing the differences between the choices and the pros and cons.

I personally went with a Sony RPTV, KP51WS520, it has two HD-component inputs plus a HDMI input for digital to digital connection from a DVD player with the same connection or DVI connection or from you cable co or satellite co. The widezoom feature on this t.v. is actually a great selling point because it stretches 4:3 material excellently. I think its on sale for maybe 1499.00 at Circuit City. This is a good time to get especially around Superbowl time. Again look at the various types and make the step forward not backwards. LOL