Things I've Learned about HDTV
Introduction:
Recently (February 2007) I decided that I would take the plunge and replace my trusty 6-year-old, 21-inch Sony Trinitron Wega for a new set. Naturally my first thoughts went to an HDTV, since they're the newest technology out there. Unfortunately I, much like the general public (along with a sad number of electronics store employees) didn't really know all that much about the technology. Before I plunked down a good chunk of cash I thought it best to do some research. The following article outlines what I learned along the way. I hope it is of use to someone out there.
::UPDATE:: I was purposefully vague in my descriptions of some of the technologies involved in HDTV, but if you're interested in learning more detailed information, I recommend this site:
The manufacturers of HDTVs want people to buy them. That's no surprise. They also want people to buy them NOW, which again is no surprise. What's surprising is that not one of these companies has yet to release any good literature on WHY consumers should buy or even care about buying an HDTV, much less what to do with them once they buy them. I had to do a lot of digging online and resort to old-fashioned trial-and-error for a lot of this information. This is what I've found out.
- HDTV's aren't all TVs
- You DO NOT have to buy an HDTV when analog TV stops broadcasting.
- You DO NOT have to pay for HDTV channels.
- Digital TV is NOT always HDTV.
- Your existing DVDs are NOT obsolete.
- HDMI Cables are greatly overpriced.
1. HDTV's aren't all TVs
That may come as a shock to some of you. It did to me. Just because a television you're buying says it's an "HDTV" does NOT mean it can actually interpret over-the-air broadcasts. Many "HDTV" products out there are actually monitors, much like the one for your desktop computer. What this means is that they have no TV tuner inside them. If you want to watch over-the-air (OTA) television or have cable TV that comes to you through a coaxial cable, you must also purchase a separate tuner to make it work with the monitor. For more information on tuners, see item number 2.
2. You DO NOT have to buy an HDTV when analog TV stops broadcasting.
When HDTVs and digital TV tuners came to market, there was much fear being spread for whatever reason about the eventual replacement of analog television. Many people (myself included) were angry at the idea that the government might force us to spend thousands of dollars on a new piece of technology in which we had no interest. Allow me to defuse that fear and anger if I may.
As of the time of this article, the shutoff date for analog TV broadcasts in the United States is February 17, 2009. This means that as of that date, all television stations will be forced to stop broadcasting in the analog spectrum. Televisions with the old NTSC tuners will no longer have any signals to pick up. What this DOESN'T mean is that your existing television will cease to work.
The thing you need to know here is all about tuners. There are two major types you'll find in most televisions out on the market: NTSC (which is the old analog industry standard) and ATSC (which is the new digital standard). Your existing standard definition TV probably already has an NTSC tuner. This allows it to decode over-the-air analog TV signals. An ATSC tuner allows you to decode over-the-air digital signals.
Part of the deal the government made with broadcasters when they discussed shutting off analog TV was how to allow those of us who couldn't afford a shiny new HDTV the ability to continue using our existing sets. ATSC digital tuners were the answer. You can buy a separate digital tuner box for your existing standard definition TV and watch digital, free TV. Most major networks offer both an HDTV and a standard TV signal for your digital tuner to pick up.
Why would you want an ATSC tuner when you can already receive free, over-the-air television? As I mentioned before, analog signals will be turned off eventually. Until that date however there is no reason to buy a separate ATSC tuner if you do not have a high-definition television. It's likely that the longer you wait, the cheaper ATSC tuners will be.
::UPDATE:: A reader has asked me to mention that the US government will be offering vouchers for discounted ATSC tuners for some people. To see if you qualify, check here or here.
3. You DO NOT have to pay for HDTV channels
A small but important piece of information for those of you who do end up buying an HDTV is that in order to view real high-definition content, you need to give your TV a high-definition signal. Think of it like buying a huge, expensive stereo system and then playing your music on a Fisher-Price turntable; regardless of how nice your receiver is, you still need a nice signal to fully enjoy it.
The good news is you DO NOT have to pay a monthly fee for HDTV. Your local cable/satellite company will likely want to sell you a package of "HD Content" channels. Examine these channels closely and ask yourself if the price is worth it. Do you generally watch only the major local broadcast channels in your area? ABC, CBS, NBC, FOX, and UPN all offer over-the-air FREE digital broadcasts to most major cities. These include standard-definition content as well as HDTV content.
All you need to take advantage of this free HDTV is a receiver and a tuner. If you use any kind of antenna or "rabbit ears" to receive regular TV over the air you already have a receiver. If not, you can obtain one for between $10 and $50. Now all you need is a digital tuner to decode the signal. If you decide to buy an HDTV, make sure it has at least an ATSC digital tuner built-in. If you plan on also watching standard analog TV you'll want a TV that has both an ATSC and NTSC tuner built-in.
4. Digital TV is NOT always HDTV
Simply because you're receiving a digital signal over-the-air does not mean that the signal is high-definition. A recent survey says that most people treat their new HDTVs like any other TV they've bought in recent years: they plug it in, turn it on and expect it to work. Although HDTVs will generally do this just fine, you're not really seeing high-definition TV like that.
HDTV is broadcast (mostly) in one of two formats: 720 line progressive-scan (720p) and 1080 line interlaced (1080i). Just for contrast sake, standard definition TV is broadcast at 480 lines interlaced (480i). Confused? Don't worry. The details of it don't really matter. Once you've seen a true HDTV broadcast fill your HDTV screen, you'll understand all the hubub.
Some HDTVs like mine (a Vizio 32-inch VX32L) will tell you (along with the channel and name of the program you're watching) what resolution your program is being displayed at. If it's a high-definition channel, you'll see 1080i or 720p. However not all shows on HD channels are actually high-definition. Often times not all the commercials are either. The broadcaster will simply blow up the standard-definition image and put black bars on either side to fill in the extra space (since HDTVs are widescreen format).
So how can you tell if you're seeing real, full-size HD content? If there are black bars surrounding the image (left and right or top and bottom) then that's a good indicator you're watching blown-up standard TV. If you're not watching programs during prime time (around 7pm-10pm for the Central time zone) it's likely you're not watching HD either. Most networks only broadcast their big programs in real high-definition. The ones I watch most often are CSI (CBS) and House (FOX). If it's your cup of tea, American Idol and 24 (both on FOX) are also broadcast in HD.
5. Your existing DVDs are NOT obsolete.
With all this talk about broadcast television, no doubt some of you are curious about the rest of your media collection. For most of us these days that means our DVD movie collection. If you buy an HDTV and hook it up to your existing DVD player you will probably notice that the picture looks, for lack of a better term, like crap. This is not your TV's fault. Remember my Fisher-Price analogy in item 3? You simply need to give your TV a better signal to work with.
Electronics companies by and large want you to believe that in order to fully enjoy your new HDTV you must buy one of their expensive and still largely-unproven Blu-Ray or HD-DVD players and then re-purchase all your existing library at between $25-40 a pop. Don't all run out to the store at once.
Let me get one thing straight up front: HD-DVDs and Blu-Ray DVDs DO offer a clearly superior picture when you look at them side-by-side with standard DVDs. I am not arguing this point. Go to your local electronics store and watch some of the demos they have up. Some of them are just stunning. What I'm arguing is that right now, 90% of the population probably doesn't care, or need to care.
Standard DVDs are designed to push out an image to standard TVs, which have an upper limit of 480 lines, either progressive scan or interlaced. Progressive scan shows the whole frame every second, whereas interlaced shows the first 240 lines (odd numbered) for a fraction of a second and then switches to the other 240 lines (even numbered). This happens so fast your eyes usually can't tell. However during fast motion shots, progressive scan pictures will look clearer.
Standard DVDs need to be enlarged to fit the native size of an HDTV. Think of an overhead projector you might have seen in grade school. The teacher has a small piece of paper that he or she needs to blow up to fit a very large screen on the wall. In order to view a standard-definition DVD with a clearer picture on an HDTV, you need to blow the image up a bit, and fill in any holes that pop up. This is called upconversion.
The bad news is your current DVD player probably can't do upconversion, unless you've purchased it fairly recently and paid more than around $79 for it. Your $30 Wal-Mart special with red/yellow/white connectors isn't going to cut it. The good news is that you can pick up a decent upconverting DVD player out there for less than $100. I bought mine (a Panasonic DVD-S52) for $89.
One thing to note when shopping for upconverting DVD players is to make sure that it has HDMI output. I don't want to get too deep into the technology. Just think of it as USB for video. You reduce all your various audio and video cables into one plug. Also, note that most upconverting DVD players do NOT include an HDMI cable in the box. I don't know why; that's just the way it is. I'll give you a heads up on where to buy those below.
6. HDMI cables are GREATLY overpriced
If you've recently tried to buy any piece of electronic equipment at a Best Buy or Circuit City, you've probably had to sit through the sales person's speech about how in order to get the most out of your new purchase you should spend another $50-150 for "high quality" cables. When the cable in question is an HDMI cable, let me assure you they are lying to you.
I'm sure there are some of you out there who argue that quality cables make a difference, and I agree under certain conditions. If you have a $1,000+ home theater system with surround sound speakers and any host of other very expensive A/V equipment, paying a bit more for a cable made by a company you trust is worth it. Keep in mind however that most people do not fall into this category.
If you're like me, you have a TV, a DVD player of some sort, and perhaps a handful of videogame systems. You play everything from the TV speakers and they're good enough for you. If this describes you, rest assured you do not need to go out and give blood in order to afford cables for your HDTV. I picked up a couple of 6-foot HDMI cables from Newegg.com for around $12.50 a piece with shipping. MonoPrice and Blue Jeans Cable are also highly regarded by many people whose opinions I've read.
If you're still skeptical, I highly recommend taking a look yourself. Most retailers like Best Buy or Circuit City offer reasonable return policies. Buy that $150 Monster Cable and a cheaper one from Newegg, hook them both up to your new TV and upconverting DVD player and see if you can tell the difference. If so, call me an idiot and return the cheaper cable. If not, return the Monster cable. Either way, pat yourself on the back for being an informed consumer willing to actually try things for yourself.
I do not intend to offer a scientific comparison between the signal strength or quality of various brands of cable. I can only offer my personal experience, which tells me that I cannot tell the difference, and if a difference exists I am quite skeptical that it warrants me paying the full price of my DVD player over again for a length of metal and plastic.