High Definition TVs

C

Carlo

Guest
Hi


I was wondering can anyone help me on this . I'm about to buy a plasma display and appararently the new High Definition TVs (HD for short) are the way to go. Problem is that they are much more expensive than the normal TVs.

So my question is is the HD essential to get or can I go for the cheaper non HD TVs ? I heard that the picture quality is only better on the HD TVs if you get a HD broadcast and it makes no difference when you dont or when watching DVDs - is this true ? Also I hear Sky are going to broadcast HD next year but as I am with NTL their changeover may be a good few years yet .

Any help would be greatly appreciated

thanks
 
Well I'm only learning about HD now Carlo but from what I've picked up on so far I would say that HD is not essential at the moment (and probably not for some time) but you will of course future proof yourself by buying a HD Ready set.

Like you though, I don't have Sky and can't see myself upgrading from my DVD Player to HD-DVD (or whatever the new standard will be) anytime soon, so I'm inclined to save my money by going with a 'normal' LCD TV right now.

Can others advise please?
 
I agree. I'm just buying a new telly at the mo and I'm going to go for a 32 " LCD and not bothering spending the extra 300 (or more) to have it "HD-Ready".

That said, with the HD-TV becoming the standard, the price of non-HD tellies is supposed to come down in a big way - sometime around Christmas or the new year ... I read that on here or else in boards.ie, apparantly from some bloke who works in a sony centre.
 
buttonmoon said:
I agree. I'm just buying a new telly at the mo and I'm going to go for a 32 " LCD and not bothering spending the extra 300 (or more) to have it "HD-Ready".

That said, with the HD-TV becoming the standard, the price of non-HD tellies is supposed to come down in a big way - sometime around Christmas or the new year ... I read that on here or else in boards.ie, apparantly from some bloke who works in a sony centre.
Click to expand...

I would disagree. If buying a 32" (or bigger) TV you will appreciate the better display (a) if you watch DVD and the DVD or the TV has pixel doubling technology (e.g. Philips Pixel Plus) to increase the resolution or (b) when you eventually get a high definition TV input from e.g. Sky or NTL.

If you buy a non-HD Ready TV now and try to sell it in a few years, you could be sorry you saved a few hundred Euro now. :(

See this thread.
 
MonsieurBond said:
If you buy a non-HD Ready TV now and try to sell it in a few years, you could be sorry you saved a few hundred Euro now.
Click to expand...

Not sure I agree, first off, you will only get a fraction of the price you pay for an item when you go to sell it in a short few years, HD or not. Could well be worth the punt to get a non-hd tv today in the knowlege that you will get a HD TV in 5 years time when they are a fraction of the price they are now, and you could have a brand new TV for the same total outlay.

Over the years I have bought low-spec PCs for very small money so when I feel like a change it does not hurt to side-line the old one. A philosophy of someone who does not have a lot of cash to splash.
 
How much I could sell it on for in a few years time wouldnt bother me - because I'll have it for a good few years. Anyway, we usually end up giving old tv's to nephews or nieces or someone - someone around could always do with it.

But I've decided to get HD one anyway because I seen this one [broken link removed] and it's just a little bit over my budget but may as well go for it. Magnet (my provider) have said they'll be doing HDTV in about 8 months time or whenever Sky do it because they get most of their channels from Sky.
 
Got a Sharp HD TV Yesterday 1900 Euros for a sharp 37".
I thought it was worth the few extra Euros.
Very impressive picture even if not broadcasted in HD yet.
 
Joe Nonety said:
The World Cup in Germany is going to be broadcast in HD.
Click to expand...

In some HD enabled markets. I'd imagine Sky are the only ones who have any chance of being in a position to broadcast anything in HD in that timeframe, but I'd imagine they'll be charging extra for this service. I believe it was mentioned before in this forum that NTL are at least a year off rolling this out in the UK. RTE are years away!

Leo
 
Originally Posted by Joe Nonety
The World Cup in Germany is going to be broadcast in HD.
Click to expand...


Leo said:
In some HD enabled markets. I'd imagine Sky are the only ones who have any chance of being in a position to broadcast anything in HD in that timeframe, but I'd imagine they'll be charging extra for this service. I believe it was mentioned before in this forum that NTL are at least a year off rolling this out in the UK. RTE are years away!

Leo
Click to expand...

As stated elsewhere in this thread and other linked threads, Sky are launching HD in 2006 in UK and Ireland, in time for the World Cup.

You will not be able to buy a non-HD ready LCD or Plasma from that point on if you try!

You will also get the benefits of sharper picture, especially from digital sources like NTL Digital and especially DVD. Many DVD players upscale to the higher resolution, and many TVs do the same thing. Also, if your PC or Laptop has a DVI output, you may be able to display HD content from there. (Not to mention streaming content wirelessly from your PC onto an amp or DVD player or even TV with an Ethernet interface.)

Ultimately of course it comes down to budget. My advice - if you can afford to pay a bit more, buy a HD ready set.
 
Aren't Sky only planning on rolling out Sports 1, two Movies channels, and Sky One to HDin 2006? It'll be a long time before all or even most channels are delivered in HD.
Leo
 
Leo said:
Aren't Sky only planning on rolling out Sports 1, two Movies channels, and Sky One to HDin 2006? It'll be a long time before all or even most channels are delivered in HD.
Leo
Click to expand...

You are correct:


Sky One, a Sky Sports Channel and two film screens will be among the programmes to mark the launch. Among the first Box office hits to be offered in HD will include Spiderman 2 and House of Flying Daggers.
Click to expand...


After all, it's movies and sport that people probably want to see in HD, isn't it?

Obviously, BBC1 and the rest would have to be broadcast in HDTV in order to be available on Sky in HDTV.

While some programmes are filmed in HDTV, there is still some way to go before all soaps etc. are filmed in this way. The BBC is currently developing plans to produce all its TV output to meet HDTV standards by 2010.

 
Been down this road myself and the following are some of the considerations.

1) Rumours put the new Sky Box at somewhere about €700 and an additional sub of about €15 per month. Is the take up going to be significantin 2006. I don't think so beacuse most people will have to chuck their current TV and buy this box. A lot of expense. Suspect with the SSIA madness late 2006/early 2007 you'll see a bigger take up.

2) Is the picture really that much better? The picture is really superb. Its like looking out a window. Seen some live sport in the USA on HDTV and the picture is just so clear. I'd imagine in terms of improvement in quality it would be like comparing audio casettes with CDs.

3) Is now the time to buy? Personally I've taken the leap, I bought a HD projector but I think that technology is moving so quickly that I probably should have waited till next Christmas. We'll have much more choice, HD DVDs will be in full production also and I would imagine that prices will be 20-30% lower than they are now. Plasmas seem to have their problems and it would appear that LCD & DLP are taking over. Whats the point in gearing up for the future when the future hasn't happened yet. So, I would be of the view that you should delay until these things happen and not buy any TV at all.

4) How important is a TV to you? Can't see much point in spending thousands on all this stuff if you only watch Anne Doyle in the evening (unless you have an unhealthy appreciation of AD). Non HD sets are still available cheaply in the USA despite HD being available for some amount of time.

To summarize:
If you can wait, do so.
If you can't wait and you like your telly, go the HD route
If you couldn't be bothered by telly, buy a cheap non HD and chuck it 5/6 years time when analog is turned off.
 
as an aside... if you intend buying a new xbox360 soon or a playstation 3 next year, both consoles support hdtv so your games will look that much prettier on your new tv
 
brian-f said:
as an aside... if you intend buying a new xbox360 soon or a playstation 3 next year, both consoles support hdtv so your games will look that much prettier on your new tv
Click to expand...

Good point.

The bottom line, as with all technology, is: it will get cheaper over time but will eventually become obsolete. Anyone wanting to buy has to try to guess the point of mass market adoption when the new technology is affordable, but before it gets superseded.

If you don't need to buy a new X (where X = TV, DVD, Playstation 4 or XBox 720, amplifier, hi-fi, latté maker, Porsche kettle, toaster, sandwich maker (trust me - you'll use it once and it's impossible to clean), Kenwood fruit smoothie maker (trust me - you'll use it for a week and then give up), then wait Y months or better still Z years.

If you do want a new TV, in my humble opinion, you would be loopy to buy a non-HD ready model now unless it was very cheap, like 1/2 the price of the HD model. If you can't afford the extra dosh now, then don't buy it now - wait for the sales.
 
Sky adds new channel to HD lineup

Home Cinema Choice [broken link removed]:

The Sky One HD channel is now promising 24, Rescue Me, Bones, Over There, Stargate, and Stargate Atlantis in HD, plus a second series of Final Chance To Save that’s just been commissioned. There will be two completely high definition movie channels, plus up to 10 extra movies in HD shown on Sky Box Office. HD movies available at launch will include Kill Bill: Vol 1, Spider-Man 2, and Big Fish.
Click to expand...

Sky Sports as well of course.

The same website [broken link removed]that National Geographic Channel has now been added to the HD lineup.
 
I just finished reading an article recently where they warned against getting a plasma screen unless you can afford to change it evey 5 years.You're esentially buying a product that will deteriorate over time,the article mentioned that Sony had stopped production of CRTs and were pushing LCD TVs as the way to go.All their new development is going into this,might be worth considering before you buy a Plasma.
 
Anyone have any opinions on the picture quality of rear projection TVs along the lines of Sony's [broken link removed]? The 50" is under €1800 and should drop further in the new year. I have the space for it and I'm not prepared to pay much more than this for a TV.
Leo
 
This ones?

[broken link removed]

Looks like old technology (if its this one). This one isn't HD ready. Lot of money.

Main problem with rear projection is that they are difficult to watch if viewing from an angle. Newer DLP Rear projection ones seem to solve this and I think that Sony have a newer range.

If you are serious about spending that sort of money on a TV I'd invest a couple of hours on http://www.avforums.com/forums/index.php
 
Thanks for that Alan. That's not the one I saw in the Sony shops, but was the closest link I could find on the Sony.ie site. The one I was looking at is HD ready, so hopefully an improvement over the one linked. Will head over avforums way.
Leo
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top