High Definition TV Broadcasts

[R2B2]

I know there's been a couple of threads recently on the merits of HD telly's, but does anybody know what the future plans are for broadcasting HD television?

I've been checking out the sales over the last couple of days and it seems now would be as good a time as any to but a HD telly - specially as our present gas one is on it's last legs.

What the yoof in Curry's has been telling me today is that the only current source of HD viewing is from a HD DVD player, adding that Sky are switching to HD broadcasting in February with their premium channels, with the rest being phased in over the forthcoming year. BBC and ITV etc, to catch up at some unknown point the future.

Does all this sound right? Anybody know about details of the planned changover?

Another thing - if you watch ordinary TV on an HD telly, would the picture be any better (or worse!) than what it is at present on an old style telly?

:beer: as ever.

 

[Rolfy Dave]

Dont quote me on it Rob, but I have heard that for the foreseeable future, only SKY will be broadcasting HD format... Terrestrial service has no plans to introduce it for at least 3 or 4 years..

If I remember rightly, I got this info off the jeremy Vine show on consumer products about 2 months ago... Seems they are plugging this "New Technology" (which America & Japan has had for about 2 years) just to move units into the public arena from the factories which are now producing them...

Hope that may be of help.

Best wishes & Happy new year.

Rolfy
:beer:

 

[R2B2]

Nice one Rolfy. These are precisely the kind of points I want to know about....... Cheers :bow:

 

[Pugwash]

If you ever get your hands on an Xbox 360 and a component video lead you might see some HD output too. I don't see you getting HD out of a DVD player no matter what they claim, with them being limited to 576 lines and 720 columns. You'll have to wait for the next generation of discs and players for true HD movies.

 

[Judge Dredd]

You will also

wait for the price to come down to something sensible. As with all electronic goods the first ones are always bloody expensive. Give it a couple of years and let Murdoch lose some money first before going HD.

 

[FIREJIM5]

T'INTERNET

Don't go to the high street to buy one, by all means have a look at them in the shop, but buy online. I recently bought a TV and found it ?450 cheaper than Comet were doing it, ordered it and 3 days later arrived at my house.
Jim.

 

[Stevebrooke]

I concur with Rolfy and the Judge.

If it was me I'd wait until the terrestrial people start broadcasting in HD. Although Sky may start it off the terrestrial channels you get through your sky box will probably still be "standard" telly broadcasts.

You may also notice on some of the specifications that the display is 768 pixels high. As HD TV is about 1000 or 1100 lines you still won't be getting the best out of it. You'll need to find a set with a higher pixel count.

 

[Pugwash]

Bear this in mind when you see the 42" panasonic plasma TV for sale on play.com for ?1200. If you get the PDF manual down from the Panasonic web site you'll see it's just progressive, not HD progressive resolution.

 

[Barryboy]

Don't go to the high street to buy one, by all means have a look at them in the shop, but buy online. I recently bought a TV and found it ?450 cheaper than Comet were doing it, ordered it and 3 days later arrived at my house.
Jim.

Why not try Richer Sounds? I have no interest in them other than as a customer, but I have always found that they have the best prices for all sorts of HIFi and AV gear. Just type Richer Sounds into your browser.

 

[Pugwash]

I rang them the other week on behalf of a customer who was after a 42" plasma. They will tell you honestly which is best and does what for your money.

 

[R2B2]

I don't see you getting HD out of a DVD player no matter what they claim, with them being limited to 576 lines and 720 columns. You'll have to wait for the next generation of discs and players for true HD movies.

Right! I wonder what they (Curry's) were doing in the store then. It was def a stunning good picture running on the demo model which the yooof said was coming from the DVD player next to it! The images were carefully chosen I'd say, shots of underwater coral reefs and colourful parrots and things - not yer regular tv channel for sure.

Another Question, what does HDMI stand for and is it important? Found a tv on the Richer Sounds site (cheers BB) that declares HD ready, but the spec shows list also shows HDMI = No. :dunno:

Currently got an eye for the LG 32" LCD HD ready. Curry's in store price ?999, website price ?873. Any thoughts?

Cheers men.

 

[Pugwash]

If you watch something like "Contact" or "The Blue Planet" it does look stunning from a regular DVD player on a big screen. DVD quality is affected by bitrate and encoding technology and is stunning when done by the best.

I only have a 36" CRT and frankly have no intention of getting a bigger one until they sort out what they're playing at and I can find a supporting brick wall to hang a panel on.

For now I think the only way to see true HD images is with an xbox360 and component (red green blue) video leads. Both very hard to get hold of.

 

[Judge Dredd]

HDMI

About HDMI

HDMI (High-Definition Multimedia Interface) is the first and only industry-supported, uncompressed, all-digital audio/video interface. HDMI provides an interface between any audio/video source, such as a set-top box, DVD player, or A/V receiver and an audio and/or video monitor, such as a digital television (DTV), over a single cable.

HDMI supports standard, enhanced, or high-definition video, plus multi-channel digital audio on a single cable. It transmits all ATSC HDTV standards and supports 8-channel digital audio, with bandwidth to spare to accommodate future enhancements and requirements.

http://www.hdmi.org/consumer/faq.asp

 

[Samster]

This may answer a few basic questions around what exactly HDTV is:

http://electronics.howstuffworks.com/hdtv.htm

That demo that's all over the high street (the one with the underwater coral and the motocross bikes)....... have a sneaky look around the back and you'll find a silver box with a blue light on it called an HD Stream player.........

I recently read a review of a philips HDTV. This has something called Pixel Plus 2 HD image processing, and they say that if you play a normal DVD via the scart the telly does some impressive trickery to the picture.

http://www.t3.co.uk/reviews/entertainment/tv_-_lcd/philips_32pf9830_hd-ready_lcd_tv

 

[R2B2]

Top Posts

Excellent information men - thanks.

Been back to the Curry's superstore again today to check out further the kit on display and it seems the pictures I mentioned being demo'd earlier were coming from a box (DVD player) supplied by LG which supposedly upscales a DVD signal to to HD.

There were also a few DVD players on the shelf (Tosh, Pan, Sam, Philips etc) that claim to do the same thing. These were marked Upscaling or HD Equiv players! :dunno: