Is High Definition overblown?

Nigel Tufnel

Nigel Tufnel

Ancient Mariner
Is it just me or is HDTV just a little bit over done? I  got a HDTV 5 years ago when I was living near Boston. I also had a DVD player. The movies looked better and having 5.1  surround sound made the experiences awesome( especialy watching Rock In Rio). My cable company was one of the first in the country to carry HD broadcasting. While we had the capability, there was very little in content. It was mostly sporting events and Disovery HD. I noticed a tremendous difference betwwen an Ice Hockey game broadcast in standard analog and a game in HD. I saw the ruts in the ice from the skates and Steve Dueschane take a puck in the mouth and loose 4 teeth. My wife was repulsed but she was amazed that she could see the roots of the teeth sitting in the puddle of blood. We could also see the blades of grass during NFL games. I thought I was on the cutting edge of technology.

5 years later, I have relocated to Maryland, where Maryland, Delaware and Pennsylvainia all meet. We have ComCast, but alas, no HD. Because Comcast has absorbed 3 seperate cable companies, they have 3 different infrastructures using inferior grade RG59 cable which is not sufficient enough to carry HD content and most of the lines are buried instead of being strung up on a pole. I used to install Direct TV and put in my own Ka/Ku band HD dish. Now with much more HD channels and more content, I realize that the HD sword may cut both ways. I used to love Jillian Barberie, and did'nt see her in HD. Now, I saw her in HD and lets just say that I much preferred the SD version. The same can be said about Michael Douglas. Now I am not gay, but I can appreciate a good looking guy. I saw him on a TV show that was broadcast in HD and he looked terrible. I also looked at Deborah Norville in HD and she did'nt look good either. Have we gone too far? I mean NFL football and hockey are awesome in HD, but Entertainment Tonight or the Late Shoiw with David Letterman are an entirely different ball of wax. Respond to this thread and let me  know what you guys think.
 
I still use rabbit ears (no worries, getting the converter box :P) so I could careless. I'm yet to see stuff in HD actually. I wonder if my buddy has it... He has the big ass TV and surround sound, I wouldn't be surprised if he went for HD as well, so I should give him a visit in the name of research :)
 
I have a HDTV, with HD satellite, and the DVD player... and I love it!  I have actually seen movies on my tv that were better than in the theater.  Porn is not good in HD, but sports are outstanding on HD; I will watch almost any sport that is in HD.
 
I was in Currys the other day looking at the 42'' HD TV's and contemplating whether it would be a sound investment. Then I saw one of said 42'' TV's playing a TV channel in SD. One TV was 720p and the other was 1080p. In 720p it looked OK. No worse than on an SD TV. But what shocked me was the appalling quality of the 1080p TV. It was like watching a low quality streaming video with loads of aliasing effects around the moving images.
OK it WAS SD and the High Definition Blu Ray DVD they were playing on the TV next to it blew me away but given that 99% of the TV channels are SD I really don't see the point in buying yet. The prices are going to really drop in the next few years. Maybe if I had a PS3 it might be worth while but I'm still not convinced.
 
Yes, the porn industry is really up in arms about this. I agree with Wasted, porn in HD, eeeewwww!
 
That seems to be a general consensus, other people have brought that up and it is going to be interesting to see where the adult industry goes from here.
 
Real World said:
I was in Currys the other day looking at the 42'' HD TV's and contemplating whether it would be a sound investment. Then I saw one of said 42'' TV's playing a TV channel in SD. One TV was 720p and the other was 1080p. In 720p it looked OK. No worse than on an SD TV. But what shocked me was the appalling quality of the 1080p TV. It was like watching a low quality streaming video with loads of aliasing effects around the moving images.
OK it WAS SD and the High Definition Blu Ray DVD they were playing on the TV next to it blew me away but given that 99% of the TV channels are SD I really don't see the point in buying yet. The prices are going to really drop in the next few years. Maybe if I had a PS3 it might be worth while but I'm still not convinced.
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The thing is this: it depends on how you get your channels.  In the States, all over the air channels are going digital, and most are broadcasting in 720 or 1080.  I have satellite, and I got the HD package with it, and there is nothing like it.  But you are correct, the SD channels are not to watch on a big tv, too 'fuzzy'.  If you buy a ps3, a blu-ray player, or a (no longer produced) HD DVD player, they will do a great job of up-converting the SD movies (some better than others).

As to price, yes, these will be coming down in price, especially over the next few months (holidays and all). 

D&N said:
Yes, the porn industry is really up in arms about this. I agree with Wasted, porn in HD, eeeewwww!
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Yeah, it didn't go so well for them, either too much air-brushing, or too many flaws to be seen.  HDDVD was the first choice of the adult industry, but since it died off, they appear to be going with blu-ray.  A SD version of porn looks horrible, even up-converted.  Tho, rumor has it that some of the new Hi-def flicks aren't as horrible as they originally were.

A side note-- to anyone that is interested in a blu-ray, be careful of the 'great buys' out right now.  The profile 1.0 isn't worth buying-- the 1.1 is ok, but it isn't upgradable to 2.0, and you loose a lot of 'extra features' that are built into the disc.  If you aren't worried about accessing any of the additional online content, the 1.1 would probably be fine, tho I know of some people that have had some issues with newer discs that have come out, with playability and all.
 
Real World said:
t given that 99% of the TV channels are SD I really don't see the point in buying yet. The prices are going to really drop in the next few years.
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I don't know about other countries, but in the U.S. there is quite a lot of HD programming, particularly via DirecTV (though you pay extra), and virtually all major sporting events are broadcast in HD.  Moreover, the four major networks broadcast in HD over the air. 

The difference between SD and HD is striking, particularly for sports (hockey fans must have HD), and I cannot recommend HD strongly enough.  The difference between 720p and 1080p is not nearly as significant as the difference between 720p (or 1080i) and standard definition, so my advice would be to get a less expensive 720p set.  If any of you are considering it, prices on HD sets are expected to be ridiculously low this holiday season, as retailers are fearing the worst given the state of the economy.  For those in the U.S., the Friday after Thanksgiving, while a generally miserable day to go shopping, is projected to have the best prices, according to the Wall Street Journal.  For what it is worth, I have been informed of at least one specialist's opinion that Pioneer Elite makes the best HD sets, while LG sets are to be avoided.  (Random trivia:  What does LG stand for?)

I have no comment re HD pornography. 
 
cornfedhick said:
(Random trivia:  What does LG stand for?)
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Originally: Lucky Goldstar, the two companies that merged to create it.  Now, they market it as "Life's Good."
 
I just switch between 720 and 1080. For instance, if I'm watching something in SD, then I watch it in 720. But if something comes on in HD, I switch it to 1080. Makes all the difference in the world.  You could even get away with 480i. Not much of a difference, but depending upon where you live, then the content itself having HD programming is another thing entirely.
 
when I first got my HD tv (1080p), I would watch anything-- public television always has cooking and painting shows, and their HD stuff is so great, I'd spend the afternoon watching that, cause the picture was so good! 
 
I got a free one year trail of a full HD package when I bought my T.V. and I would watch anything on Discovery HD. After the year was up they wanted 300 dollars for the HD box but I didn't think it was worth it. I can live with the SD but there's a HUGE difference between the to hockey's the best sport to watch in my opinion :). I just recently bought a ps3 the quality's amazing I wasn't expecting to use it for the blue ray but I after renting Casino Royale lastnight I'm defiantly going to be watching more movies.Oh and NHL09 and Metal gear solid look amazing nothing like the old Nintendo days(even tho I miss them).I couldn't say I've watched porn in HD or herd any one talk about it hurting the porn industry good conversation starter tho.
 
You should go through Direct TV for your HD channels. Like I opened this thread with depending upon your area, your local cable provider may not have the correct cable infrastructure for HD. HD is usually carried in 2.3 ghz , and RG 59 cable does not have the capability to carry that signal. Your higher level channels will get lost first. Where rg 6 is made to carry that bandwidth. Also if your home is prewired for cable, go to your cable junction( usually in the basement or outside your home where your landline beige box is). If you do not have access to the junction, just take the wall plate off where your cable is hooked up in your room. On the otherside of the wall plate, there will be a short legnth of cable, it should be stamped wih either RG6 or RG59.
 
Wasted155 said:
I have a HDTV, with HD satellite, and the DVD player... and I love it!  I have actually seen movies on my tv that were better than in the theater.  Porn is not good in HD, but sports are outstanding on HD; I will watch almost any sport that is in HD.
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Including darts and snooker?
 
Eddies Wingman said:
Including darts and snooker?
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You haven't watched a dart penetrate the bullseye until you have seen it on HD!!  (i don't know what 'snooker' is...)
 
Wasted155 said:
(i don't know what 'snooker' is...)
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A bit like pool, but on a much bigger table. :D

Seriously, it is a very British/Irish and Commonwealth sport so it's no surprise you won't have heard of it.
 
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