HD now a breakthrough in multimedia and the world at large 21 century. But little of its prevalence in these days of the fact that prices are not very high and not everyone can afford the luxury. In this material you can see what is the HD and what is his eating. Learn the different sides, differences and improvements. New era of projection.
Avoid The Really Cheap And Really Expensive
I know what it’s like when you’re in Best Buy or Circuit City browsing the wall for the affluent, with the $5,000 HDTV sets and sound systems that are equal in price to one year of your mortgage payments. The truth is that these TVs, much like the electronic store droids who try to peddle this stuff, don’t have much substance right now.
It takes no more than a quick Internet search to find an HDTV for just a few hundred dollars, but buying one that’s too cheap could be a big mistake. Format, size and technical specifications are all factors that must be considered. A good entry-level HDTV is a flat panel model with a screen size of at least 30″ and a resolution of 720p.
Honestly, no one really wants a hi-def TV unless the size is big enough to really take advantage of the extra pixels. There are even HDTVs in the channel with 15″ screens. Trust me – you can’t fully appreciate Jessica Alba on Blu-ray Disc with a TV that small.
Jessica Alba in “Fantastic Four”
Also, if you are mulling the purchase of an HDTV at a brick-and-mortar or online store, make sure to look at the actual specifications. Some of the shadier merchants will group in sets dubbed “EDTV.” Avoid this like the plague. Seriously. It stands for “enhanced definition,” and only offers 480p, the same sort of resolution that HDTVs give to standard-definition DVDs and the like. In other words, you won’t be able to see anything in true high definition with this kind of TV. What’s worse is that EDTV sets are usually marked up significantly over standard TVs, and usually for 10% – 20%, you can get a true hi-def model.
Sharp’s LC-20AV7U may look like an HDTV but this EDTV set is not even worth considering.
2. Avoid The Really Cheap, Continued
Another word to the wise is that you do not want a projection HDTV. I know that 10 – 15 years ago these monstrously obese sets were the penultimate symbol of wealth, but now it’s sort of like a step back for high definition. Projection sets are only available for really big TV sets. Shopping around, you’ll probably be able to find a 46″- 50″ projection HDTV for around $1,000. The price tag will look good, but these sets are, for all intents and purposes, impossible to move. I guess that’s good if you ever get robbed, but then again the thief would probably prefer a flat-panel anyway.
At over 184 lbs., this 60″ monster projection HDTV from Philips probably weighs more than you do.
Also, most projection HDTVs use a technology called digital light processing (DLP) for picture display, which is widely panned by video enthusiasts because of abnormal image effects and poor response time for fast-moving video. For the budget conscious, projectors are also just not a viable solution. A quality HD projector alone is tough to find for under $1,000, especially after factoring in the price of a screen and installation.
There is also a lot more talk now about 1080p sets. A lot of HDTV models only support a top video resolution of between 720p and 1080i. The number refers to how many lines of pixels there are. The top technology available now is 1080p. Even if a TV has a little less than 1080 lines, however, the viewing can be set to show a good representation of a 1080i quality. What 1080p adds is the ability to refresh the pixels at twice the speed of a 1080i set. A 1080i (interlaced) set refreshes every other pixel across the screen, back and forth, in the span of 1/30 of a second, while a 1080p (progressive) TV can refresh all pixels at the same time, resulting in an even clearer, more-seamless video display.
Virtually all Blu-ray Discs and HD DVDs have 1080p support, but other than that, there is almost no content source that uses this technology. Absolutely no cable or satellite programming is available in 1080p and you’ll be hard pressed to find three good video games that support the top video resolution.
There’s also debate about just how much of a difference there is between the two formats. Right now, 1080p technology comes at a rather absurd price premium over 720p/1080i, and given the lack of mainstream content available, it makes very little financial sense to worry about 1080p right now.
Finally, when you’re purchasing a big-ticket item like an HDTV, you always want one of the top-name brands. Again, it’s easy to find an inexpensive set when you browse the list of manufacturers that are just some cheap side project set up by a refrigerator company or whatever. Also be sure to avoid any “store brand” HDTVs, like Best Buy’s Insignia line. These are usually products created by a bigger company, with the store asking for an exclusive name stamp. I imagine the conversation is probably something like: “Psst…you know all those bad HDTV sets you have sitting in your nuclear waste bin? We’d like to buy all of them, so we can sell them for 10% less than your good models.” I only combed through the most trusted consumer electronics names to find some of the best sub-$1,000 options available.
. The Perfect Medium
The only debate left is LCD versus plasma. Advancements have come to both formats over the past several years to the point that previous criticisms of each have become really minimized.
Plasma, however, is mostly suited for really huge TVs, measuring 50″ and up. At that level, you’re pretty much just looking at the $1,500+ range. LCD is the way to go for an entry-level HDTV.
Westinghouse is a great brand for low-cost HDTVs. It only manufactures LCD models, and doesn’t add a lot of frills. One example is Westinghouse’s SK-32H240S 32″ flat-panel LCD HDTV. It has a built-in HD tuner for free over-the-air high-def programming, two HDMI and two component video inputs, and a 1366 x 768 pixel resolution (720p), which is the standard for low-cost HDTVs. That’s a little less than the 1080 lines required for full HD, but the picture is still going to look really nice, and with built-in progressive scanning, the picture will be extremely crisp. This model can be found at most brick-and-mortar stores for around $700, and even less than that at online outlets.
Westinghouse’s SK-32H240S HDTV
Toshiba is also a name to consider. Take for example the company’s 32HL67U 32″ flat-panel LCD HDTV. Part of Toshiba’s Regza line, this model has a 1366 x 768 resolution, three HDMI/two component video inputs and 12-bit digital video processing. It also has a built-in HD tuner. This set can be found from retail stores for around $800, and online for around $700.
Toshiba’s Regza 32HL67U HDTV
Another good brand for those on a budget is HP. The computer company has delved lightly into the HDTV market, and its LC3272N 32″ flat-panel LCD HDTV is priced at around a cool $800. It sports a full HD tuner, three HDMI inputs and two component video inputs. It also has a 1366 x 768 resolution and comes with two built-in 10 Watt speakers.
4. Bargain Hook-Ups And Accessories
So you’ve found the perfect HDTV. Before you start feeling too good, though, remember that the TV is only the beginning. You’re going to need cables, maybe a wall mounting unit and a nice calibration set to ensure the picture is as good as it can be. Don’t cry, though. With a good eye and some common sense, this won’t dent your bank account nearly as much as the TV purchase.
Cables are where you have the best chance of getting ripped off. It’s really kind of criminal the prices that some companies charge. Although you might think a $150 Monster HDMI cable is better than a cheap $20 one, you’d be surprised to hear there’s not much difference. Wake up, everyone. A cable is just a cable. An official HDMI cable has to have certain specifications, and yes, even the cheap $20 ones follow these.
Cables Unlimited offers some of the least-expensive HDMI cables, starting at $20 for one that measures six feet. Buy a couple of these and you’re ready to start experiencing the real high-def life.
This $20 cable from Cables Unlimited sure looks just like any other HDMI cable. Why pay more?
Also, since I only talked about flat-panel sets, I have to mention wall-mounting kits. They’re perfect for adding the extra touch of class to your living room. They also help in reminding you why you didn’t go into professional fixture installation for a living. However, before the headache of deciphering the installation instructions that look like they came out of a chemical engineering plant, there is the headache of deciding which unit to buy.
There are mounts that will run you more than $300, but these are usually more suited for really big sets, and they’re also usually overpriced. A nice wall mount requires looking no further than Sanus’ VM1B unit. It supports up to 50 lbs, which would support all the TVs mentioned in this article. It also swivels and tilts 15 degrees in all directions so you can alter the viewing angle instead of forcing it into one permanent spot. This unit is priced at around $70.
Sanus’ VM1B wall mount unit
Finally, to unlock your inner videophile, I suggest getting the “Avia Guide To Home Theater DVD.” Feature filled and highly regarded by HD techies, this DVD has calibration tests, information on HDTV and handy guides on how to plug in your TV to a surround-sound system, stereo or any other external audio source. We all know that when “The Weather Channel HD” goes live later this year you’re going to want to make sure your TV is set up just perfectly for those local forecasts, and Avia’s DVD can make that possible. It retails for around $40 and is worth keeping for when you upgrade your home theater set-up.
The Avia home theater DVD is a great tool for anyone with an HDTV.
So, $700-$800 for the TV, $40 for a couple HDMI cables, $70 for a wall mounting unit and $40 for a home theater calibration DVD. That brings the total package to $850-$950, and is basically everything you need to make your HD dreams a reality.
Conclusion
When it comes to buying your first HDTV, just relax. This technology is still on the evolution train, and when it’s time to upgrade from a basic set in a few years, high-end stuff will be more affordable and will actually be more practical. Instead of just waiting two or three years for this evolution to happen, you may as well pick up an entry-level HD set and take it on a test run over the latter part of this decade. It doesn’t take a 60″ model to see the high-def difference, and hey, HD is the way of the future so you really should come on board.
Tom’s Hardware
