HDTV: Theory or Myth. Help! (1 Viewer)

[Glenn Guerra]

I have been wanting an HDTV for a few months now, but I have slowly been hearing things that have put me off. First off I know that the majority of these TV's need a box top tuner. Around $500.00. Thats a given otherwise you cannot watch HDTV. So I hear.
I have also read and heard that you cannot record on regular VHS becuase of copywrite laws or what have you. True?
Price is a big issue considering you have to buy an additional componnent to watvh HDTV.
Just because you have a HDTV with the tuner doesnt mean you can see everything in HDTV. just a handful of shows are broadcast that way
The standards are not set just yet
Could someone please put an end to these doubts and finally say yes or no to buying an HDTV right now, or is waiting a better option. I Also realize that the stations broadcasting these HDTV shows must be brought up to code to Broadcast in HDTV. If the station isnt and the show is, I believe you cannot watch HDTV.
Thanx for your help.
Glenn

 

[Rod Melotte]

Just my personal views.

LOL - excellent questions with so many answers it's silly.

I'll tell you MY personal thoughts.

IF you want a great picture look for progressive scan sets. To me that was more important then being HD compatable (I actually got interlace but thats another story).

All your questions are valid concerns. All stations MUST be HD in 4 years (unless they move it back again). Another thing to consider is that the down conversion boxs from HD to analog are suppose to be outstanding (DVD quality) so us non-HD guys will not suffer in the least.

Price is a big issue and is sure to come down so waiting is a good option.

For me there were to many "if's" on the table for me to fork out extra $$ for something that won't happen for 4 years yet.

 

[Mike I]

HDTV is moving in big time in all areas....Some HD sets have an internal HD decoder, while some are HD ready and require a set top box usually which you can get anywhere from 300 to 500...Many Cable companies are or by the end of the year offer HD and will provide you with the HD box for the same price as there monthy charge for a digital cable box....

The reason you can not record HD on your VCR is not because of copy right issues but because HD is 720p or 1080i while your VCR is an old analog 480i device...

Actually there is quite a bit of HD progamming available and more being added all the time..CBS and ABC have just about their entire prime time line up in HD ..CBS is doing more and more sports in HD...

NBC only has a few shows in HD but I think you will see more from them next year...THey did parts of the winter olympics in HD...

WB will even have 3 or 4 show in HD this fall

HBO and showtime have a full time HD channels and Direct tv has HD net a full time HD network..

Even fox which does not do true HD does Widescreen 480p on most of there prime time shows...

 

[MikeyWeitz]

I didn't wait. I was in the market for a new 32" flatscreen. Didn't care about HDTV at first, but the TV that I liked best out of al the ones I saw (an could afford) was HDTV capable. I figure even tho I dont have a set top box or a SAT receiver that I need to view HDTV, I knew I was going to have this set for a LONG time and figured it should be HDTV compatible. I have had this TV for 3 weeks tomorrow and have since replaced my Interlaced DVD with a Progressive one and the pic is simply AMAZING! Even tho I probably wont have HDTV until the Dish 6000 receiver drops to around $250 or so (probably in a year or 2), I couldnt be happier.

 

[Mike I]

Mikey.

If your not a current dish customer, keep your eye out for the dish rebate promotion they run from time to time..After rebate, I paid around 270 for my 6000 when they orginally came out 2 years ago...

 

[Glenn Guerra]

Thanx guys for your response,

So Mike I, Do i understand correctly then, that I cannot record on a VCR any shows in HD? I can't program anything to be taped or record while I'm watching?

That kinda really stinks since I mostly tape shows to watch at a later time. If this is true, isn't it a huge draw back to consumers since we are so spoiled taping everything on TV and programming the VCR?

Glenn

 

[Rod Melotte]

Mike - Correct me if I'm wrong but Cable does not have the band width to carry HD. The tech at Charter told me they have no plans to go HD. I think we're in for a war between cheap digital that looks outstanding and expensive HD which looks "slighty" better on small sets and much better on bigger sets.

As far as current programming - there is SQUAT!!of the 200 channels I get 2 networks have 40% of their programming in HD. Personally I'd sait until I can see 100 HD channels and HD sets are dirt cheap.

I'm not anti-HD as it's here to stay (at least of a while) but I think a lot of people will be disappointed at their 27 inch HD sets.



just tossing a little gas on the fire.

 

[Mike I]

Glenn..

You can not record a native 1080i HD signal..Most set top boxes will let you down convert an HD program to 480i and than you would be able to record it on you regular VCR...HD VCR's are on the horizon, but that is where you get into the copy protection issues...

 

[Mike I]

Rod,

If your cable company offers Digital cable, they have pleny of bandwidth to carry HD as many cable companies currently are.....

It took close to 12 years for color tv to have as much color programming available that HD has available in less the 3 years...

 

[MikeyWeitz]

I am a current subscriber (under my GF name tho . I might try and see what they have after my yr. contract expires in Aug. I am actually moving next week and they are installing 2 dishes (the 2nd for 61.5) because of some local channels. But you and I both know I wanted the 2nd dish for the HD programming for the future. For free, I am taking advantage of it. I havent seen any deals on the 6000 tho, even for new customers. Ebay they are like $400-450 or so. I dont want to spend more then $200 on it so I am forced to wait it out!

 

[RobertR]

As far as current programming - there is SQUAT!

I wouldn't call it "squat". I get 5 channels with significant HD content: HDNet, HBO, PBS, CBS, and ABC, including quite a few movies and lots of sports (the entire Winter Olympics was shown in HD). I think the "need" for 100 HD channels is unnecessary. All I would really want is NFL games and OAR movies. You don't need 100 channels for that.

 

[Glenn Guerra]

Thanx Mike I,
I understand things better now. I didn't know it was possible to down convert. I have read in articles about this problem, however, no article ever mentioned you can down convert from HD to tape on a VHS tape. But it makes sense that you should be able to. Im glad you cleared that up.
Glenn

 

[Amy Tippin]

Hi guys, one question..

if i bought HD tv, and if there was a show on tv which said "HDtv" on the bottom screen, does it mean i can view that show in high definition? (w/out the box, and etc.)

 

[george king]

Amy,

Yes you could view the program in HDTV. However, depending on the set you buy, you might need an external tuner. HDTV's proper include the tuner necessary to decode the material. Most sets are HDTV ready, meaning they need an external set top box to view HDTV. Both types of sets have tuners to receive and decode SDTV. Think of HDTV ready sets as analogous to a computer monitor. The moniter is not worth much without the computer.

Hope this helps.

 

[Tom Pfarr]

HDTV primer based on 2 years of viewing in the BalWash area.

If you need convincing about what HDTV has to offer you must find someone who has a front projection, large screen (100-150") with HD input capability (OTA, Sat, Cable). The chances of finding anything like this type of setup in any store is Nil.

Once you see this type of setup you will understand what the appeal is. No description of HDTV can live up to 10 seconds of seeing it on a large screen.

Some Observations:

1) HDTV offers superior source material, superior in every way to any other form of consumer video. Superior source material demands a superior display device. Superior source material enables large displays without scaling artifacts as part of the "blow up".

2) HDTV ready sets do not make a silk purse out of a sow's whatever. Trying to view normal NTSC source material on any HD set is painful at best and a waste of time and money. DVD or HD material on an HD set is the only thing that makes sense.

3) Forget about recording on VHS of any downcoverted HD material. The quality loss makes this a waste of time and money. HD recording will take off with the introduction of HD "TIVO" like devices that record to large hard disks. They will probably start to appear in 2 years.

4) Sources of HD material will vary on your geographical location. If you live in an area that has broadcast OTA HD material you should be able to get NBC, ABC, CBS and PBS material but it varies greatly all over the country. If you can get satellite service then you can get HBO, HDNET and Showtime but getting broadcast HD is problematic again. Cable companies are slowly getting into the act and will offer broadcast material but this probably will not start happening until the end of this year into next year for large parts of the country. Cable guys know NOTHING about HDTV so don't even try to ask about it.

5) Display devices. Get the largest thing you can handle. If you see something like a front projector as recommended above you will never have a normal TV again.

6) Set top boxes are a MUST. There are about 5 or 6 OTA/Satellite receivers on the market for DirectTV and Dish. Cable companies use 1 or 2 boxes supplied by them. I would not buy something with an integrated HD tuner. The technology is changing too fast. Expect to buy or replace the tuner in 2-3 years. All the HD tuners also tune regular NTSC and upconvert it into awful looking stuff.

7) Once you see HDTV on a large screen properly adjusted (So that you are really seeing HD not some upconvert crap). YOU WILL NEVER EVER WANT TO LOOK AT NORMAL TV, VHS TAPES OR ANY OTHER PRIOR VIDEO SOURCE EVER AGAIN. It is that good. If you get hooked, spend the money on the display everything else is secondary.

 

[Michael Reuben]

Cable guys know NOTHING about HDTV so don't even try to ask about it.

This is not an understatement. Here in New York City, where Time Warner cable has been carrying HD channels for about three years now, customer reps routinely denied that any were available. Recently they were instructed to refer all HD inquiries to a single rep with a direct-dial who seems to be the only person in all of TW Cable/NYC who knows anything about their HD offerings.

M.

 

[Rod Melotte]

Excellent post Tom - a problem I think is happening is that consumers are being sold small HDTV's (27inch) and I don't think you can really tell THAT much difference between digital and HD at that size.

Larger then 36 and there is a big difference but most "average" people (when compared to us HT knuckleheads don't want to drop more then $500 on a TV.

I go to a store and see 27 inch HD sets playing special HD DVD's that look outstanding and the salesmen is saying that they will HAVE to have HD in 4 years! There is a lot of "half the story" information out there.

Tom - at the end of your post you say "YOU WILL NEVER WANT TO LOOK AT A NORMAL DISPLAY AGAIN"

I laugh - reminds me of when I put my first CD player in my car. The salesmen asked if I wanted a cassette deck also. My friend said - Rod - "you will NEVER listen to the cassette". I laughed and had him put it in. I NEVER listened to a cassette again!

 

[MikeyWeitz]

I didnt need to see it on a 100" screen to saw WOW. 1st time I saw HDTV was on a Panasonic 34" widescreen and on a Samsung 32" HDTV right next to it. I saw both and said WOW. I opted for the Samsung 32" HDTV for several reasons. 1) Price: biggest factor of course because I could only afford what I could afford 2) Size: my Wall unit only holds up to 36" TV (my 32 BARELY fits) 3)4:3 vs 16:9- 16:9 is way cool, but 95% of my viewing is in 4:3.

Even 480p looks AWESOME on my set and couldnt be happier buying an HDTV ready TV even tho I wont be viewing HDTV for another yr or so. If you have the means, enjoy the 1080i now if you can, it really is GREAT!