HDTV deadline

[GT2000]

Been the big talk for a while, when will HDTV become the standard? Sounds like they've decided sometime in 2009 to be it, with broadcasters accepting that Congress will set a 2009 date for them to kill their analog feeds and go strictly digital.

http://www.usatoday.com/money/media/2005-07-12-digital-tv-usat_x.htm

[johnny]

digital shmigital! is what i say. what does hdtv do for me? normal teevee works just fine.

[GT2000]

I've done many HDTV installs and seen many more of them in working order, there is a big difference as long as you have the proper tv/setup. Plasmas look great, but right now the technology sucks, it just doesn't have a very long lifespan considering the cost of the units. LCD/HDTVs can be nice, if you sit back far enough, otherwise you get a lot of grain in the picture.

Right now it's great for those who just want to have that great picture, and have the budget for it. Prices of the sets continue to drop, and once it becomes the standard, the prices could be pretty close to what people are currently paying for decent analog sets.

[raublekick]

i saw a panasonic 32" widescreen HDTV with a built in reciever for $650, not a bad price in my opinion. but it's not the price of the TVs that bothers me, it's the subscription costs. i really only watch 3 basic cable channels regularly, and there aren't all that many digital channels that interest me. but if the price is right i'd be happy to make it a standard.

[GT2000]

Yeah, that's the largest problem we have right now, when I was still working in the field, I often had people bitching about the lack of HD channels, and then I had to explain to them that we could only provide what was available to us to provide to them. All those channels on Xoom, that never was HD sat. service, those channels were strictly satelitte I believe (I don't know that for a fact, but I believe that if they were available to us, we would have provided them in the service).

[heX]

digital shmigital! is what i say. what does hdtv do for me? normal teevee works just fine.

television smellovision! is what i say! what does television do for me? normal radio with out pictures works just fine.

[johnny]

this is sometimes true. i like listening to baseball games on the radio.

[thecreeper]

i dunno, i really don't see the need. i barely watch tv on my own (though i've been watching more this summer like matlock, deep space nine, and bond movies due to strange work hours) and as long as i have a million games from my earlier systems to beat, i can't see this being a necessity.

[johnny]

deep space ninegood choice! well, the earlier seasons aren't so hot, but from around the 4th season until the end, it was a great show.

[raublekick]

the necessity basically comes from the business end. right now they offer two services: HD and analog. both are expensive, even though one is a much lower quality. the necessity is so that they don't have to continue offering a lower quality product and can focus on making the better product cost less for themselves and consumers (or something like that).

by 2009 hopefully the price will be about the same, or less, as basic cable is now, and it won't seem like such a screwover for consumers.

[johnny]

by the year 2009 tv won't even exist anymore

and instead of driving cars, every family will have their own helicopter!

[Mr Biglesworth]

Pretty soon i'm gonna be tv-less, I ain't gonna bother with one for my apartment.

[johnny]

but how are we going to watch futurama dvds when i go to visit you!? oh wait, that's what we do when we're bored at my apartment, not yours. (have you already found a place to live?)

[GT2000]

Yeah, I might as well be without a tv as well...I have one that I use maybe once or twice a week, I have my DVR set to record a couple different shows for me, Viva la Bam and Rescue Me, besides that, I could watch dvds and stuff on my laptop or desktop.

[Mike]

I want an HDTV more than I want to have Tristan's baby.

[thecreeper]

I want an HDTV more than I want to have Tristan's baby.


hard to judge, this is.

[GT2000]

mmmahh, clear mind helps it does.

http://www.allfunpix.com/humor/pics2/coolyoda.jpg

[teensupernothing]

tv is overrated. i have direct tv w/tivo on a 32 inch widescreen LCD (built in HDTV reciever and whatnot) but i use it more as a monitor than as a tv honestly. (which yes, i realize is a waste, but my brother bought my old display setup off of me, and i have yet to get a new one) i watch less than an hour of tv a day. i'd say if they (they meaning cable companies, gov't whatever...) go strictly digital it won't make anything that much better until they get some really quality shows.