To HDTV or to NOT, To 16:9 or 4:3? (1 Viewer)

[Roy H]

Should we really care? Let's just say in the worst case scenario that every HDTV sold in the past will be obsolete in the next 8 months, do you regret taking the hook so quickly? If I bought a HDTV I would be thinking about the money I put out (Thats just me). In all honesty who would have thought that the HDTV's that many may have purchased would be in danger of being worthless in the very near future? Umm, am I the only person here that thought HDTV was a somewhat (NEW) technology, (am I) ? OK let's face it, some jumped on the HDTV bandwagon and most did not.

Now we have the issue of widescreen (16:9) or (4:3). The way I see it, the 4:3 people are in the best position today. The odds are if you decided to stay 4:3 for now, you may have said (NO) to the HDTV movement. I for one did not take the HDTV, or widescreen bait yet, and I am very glad that I did not.

I still have a bad trust issue with the tech movement. And if the likes of (M/S), and (Mr Gates) have not shown us the underlined issues of the movement clearly enough, then who is to blame?

Can we blame ourself perhaps? And if we lack the fortitude to do that, should we drag as many down with us as we can and then all cry foul later?

Just my thoughts, and my opininion!

Roy.

 

[Matt Stryker]

Roy- In my opinion, I would say the widescreen/4:3 and analog/HD are seperate debates; the reasons to buy widescreen hinge primarily on what kinds of content you watch on your HT system. If you watch a lot of broadcast TV/cable/satellite or play a lot of games on your set, a 4:3 set would probably be a good bet. I rarely watch TV on my projector, mostly DVDs; thus, a 16:9 display matches my needs best.

HDTV is a "new" technology, but the standards have been a long time in the making, and sets have been sold for over 5 years now. The uproar over obsolecence is primarily due to certain parties trying to revise something that already has a decent foothold in the market. While certainly most people haven't "taken the bait" on HDTV, 2.5 million people own HD sets; certainly not a small number. And these are not small investments either; imagine if the US Government declared all Cadillacs manufactured between 1995 and 2002 unsafe and forbid driving them ever again! Certainly not everyone drives a Cadillac, but what is to stop them from declaring some thing else "non-standard"?

I doubt seriously anything will transpire making the current standard "obsolete" in the next 3-4 years or so, even if the studios got their way. There just isn't the market yet.

 

[Mike I]

Talking about a flame bait thread with no redeeming value..This is it if I ever saw one.

 

[RobertR]

Roy,

Have you ever seen HDTV? I've seen it for two solid years. There are currently five channels I have access to that have a significant amount of HDTV programming (ABC, CBS, PBS, HDNet, HBO). That adds up to thousands of hours a year of visual quality that FAR exceeds what the pathetically outdated NTSC system is capable of. It's most definitely been worth it.

Have you ever seen the benefits of 16:9 (especially on anamorphic DVDs)? Everyone who HAS says it is WELL worth it. The only issue of any significance is that of burn in, and unless you make a flat commitment to watching everything in 4:3 (which is going to become less and less common), you face that issue with a 4:3 screen also.

In addition, my HDTV capable projector shows DVDs at a scaled resolution of 1280 x 960, in PROGRESSIVE mode, as well as 16:9 anamorphic widescreen. The picture quality is far, FAR superior to that from a 4:3 interlaced (non HDTV capable) display.

In short, it's very much worth it to have a 16:9 HDTV.

 

[Jack Briggs]

What Robert said. Despite the ever-resurrecting threats from Hollywood, the 16:9 tide is now inexorable and gathering even more momentum. Those whose eyes have been opened by the HDTV experience become as ardent and passionate as Robert has. I've seen breathtaking HD images on a friend's 56-inch Toshiba. It's one of those "never-going-back" experiences.

Political imbroglios come and go, but the quest for excellence is always there. Take the plunge into HD capability. I am.

 

[AjayM]

HDTV is a "new" technology, but the standards have been a long time in the making, and sets have been sold for over 5 years now. The uproar over obsolecence is primarily due to certain parties trying to revise something that already has a decent foothold in the market. While certainly most people haven't "taken the bait" on HDTV, 2.5 million people own HD sets; certainly not a small number. And these are not small investments either; imagine if the US Government declared all Cadillacs manufactured between 1995 and 2002 unsafe and forbid driving them ever again! Certainly not everyone drives a Cadillac, but what is to stop them from declaring some thing else "non-standard"?

I'm a little unclear here, which law is going to forbid you from using your TV ever again?
The upcoming situation is not really any different than if you would have bought a pro-logic reciever then 6 months later they come out with Dolby Digital. The "old" stuff is being phased out and is going to be made obsolete (kinda like VHS, records, tapes, B&W TV's, etc). Everybody has a problem with it only because of the cost issue and the sizeable investment people have made into the current technology.
Also if you look at the numbers, you said 2.5 million HDTV sets are out there now, compare that with probably what the 100+ million total TV's in use, with a whole 2% of the market current HDTV owners are going to face a very uphill battle.
I don't support the new standards, but more to the fact that it isn't going to stop anything piracy wise, and it's just going to alienate current users.
Andrew

 

[Matt Stryker]

I'm a little unclear here, which law is going to forbid you from using your TV ever again?

I knew someone was going to tear apart that analogy, but the purpose of an HDTV (eg the primary use it was designed for) is watching high-definition programming. It may be useful for other things, but that is what it was built for. To extend the analogy, you could still use your Caddy to pull stumps out of your backyard, but you'd still have to buy another car (TV) to drive to work.
I don't think the comparison to DPL/DD 5.1 is quite fair; it is more like DVD/DIVX. There is no added resolution or feature vs the HD content we can already receive, only content management and control.
As for the numbers, 2% is pretty small, but not when you consider who potentially will be buying their new products. That 2% (early adopters) is vital to any new product life cycle, especially in an industry with high individual cost of products.
Now if you want to trade your Cadillac for my LT150, I might think about it

 

[MikeyWeitz]

I will have to argue the comparison with the Pro logic and Dolby digital. A Tv purchased now is being sold as HDTV. It is not buying HDTV now, then coming out with newer technology called something else, so I dont think that is a fair comparison. My HDTV says right on it, HDTV and I will be pissed if it won't be able to play HDTV in the future. I think it is a moot point anyway because I feel there is no way that current HDTV's will be obsolete. Either the new copyright stuff will not be implented as they currently want it, or there will be a way to be able to view the HDTV using some kind of digital to analog (then back to digital in the TV) converter.

 

[Roy H]

Hey (Mike I), I will keep this thread on topic. I may have a different opinion then you, but I will alway's respect your opinion! Please do not try to smoke and mirror my post!

Roy.

 

[AjayM]

As for the numbers, 2% is pretty small, but not when you consider who potentially will be buying their new products. That 2% (early adopters) is vital to any new product life cycle, especially in an industry with high individual cost of products.

But you're assuming that all enthusiasts have HDTV's. I'm a big enthusiast, but I don't have one yet. Mostly because I don't see the value in it right now for myself (I'm not that interested in my local channels which all do HDTV, HBO/Shotime would be nice, but that's a lot of $$$ for 2 movie channels), and because of this issue. I am thinking of buying one of the cheap HDTV's though (probably 4:3 model) so I can watch my locals and DVD's in progressive scan, but my plans for picking up a nice projector or a high end RPTV are on hold.
There's easily another 2% who will buy the new TV's along with all the regular J6p's, and unfortunatly sooner or later you will as well (although I think the we'll all be long dead of old age long before the FCC totally shuts down all old analog broadcasts).
Anyways, I'd agree with Mikey though, I don't forsee this happening without backward support, or so much change-over time that it becomes irrelevent.
Andrew