GP Feature: Is a High Definition Television Right for You?

This is becoming a much more common question that people are asking themselves, and most are overwhelmed by all of the different options to choose from. In this essay I will give many facts and dispel quite a few rumors about several different technologies as well as explain the pros and cons of each of the different technologies that are available.

#1. Should I get an HDTV

Well this depends on a lot of factors such as do you live near a big city, how many movies do you watch and if you play videogames. If you live near a big city getting free HD broadcasts in your home can be as easy as hooking up the old "rabbit ears" to your HDTV. If you live far from a major city you may need to invest in an amplified antenna (about $20-$100 on average) or you might have to ask your local cable or satellite provider about an "HD package" As for movies if you love to have a family movie night getting an HDTV can make those movies look a lot better. With a standard TV you will often times have a letterboxed image because the movie was filmed in widescreen, with a widescreen TV you can either reduce or eliminate those black bars. (Take note that standard TV and movies will now have black pillars on each side of the picture) And with the new Video Game Systems supporting HD now (PS3 and Xbox 360) getting a HDTV for those systems will make the picture much clearer compared to playing them on an old tube TV (as an added bonus the PS3 comes with an HD blu-ray DVD player built in but I will explain the High Definition DVDs a bit later.) If you meet one or more of these requirements getting a HDTV might be a good idea and a worthwhile investment.

#2. Ok, I would like an HDTV, what should I look for?

Ok this is probably the hardest part of the whole process, picking which HDTV to get. With over a dozen different technologies available it can be daunting to even figure out where to begin. The best place to start would have to be at a local electronics retailer to get a basic idea of what you want and go from there. After finding a few that you like it would be wise to look them up online before continuing. www.avsforum.com is a great website dedicated to technology that is one of the best places to look up any HDTV or go if you have a problem with your TV. (all technology is bound to have a few flaws and a few "duds" this website is the best place to start your research. After spending a few hours reading about HDTVs (this is a big investment these will be hours well spent) you should have a better understanding about what you want in an HDTV.

#3. Is Brand Name that Important?

Yes it is, infact it might be the easiest way to spot a quality set. Sony, Sharp, Samsung, LG, Panasonic, and Hitachi are some of the better high end brands. Olevia, Westinghouse, Vizio ,and Sanyo are some of the better "budget" TV makers, but you have to be very careful when shopping for the budget brands as the quality level could vary greatly between different models. With the high end manufacturers you can relax a bit but still be careful as even the best have put out a few duds. Sony is widely regarded as the best but the high price as well as the fact that Samsung is very similar in quality can be a bit of a put off. Remember that you pay for the brand as well (#1 reason why Sony is so expensive.) as the Television.

#4. The Basic Technology Breakdown.

I posted this on a gaming website as a basic buying guide for the members of that site it gives a basic rundown of the different technologies available and may prove useful. This is a direct copy and paste of what I posted.

I have been doing a lot of research over the last year into HDTV's and the different technologies that are available. I won't be recommending any specific HDTVs but I will give you a basic rundown of the facts and dispel a few myths about different technologies. I will also recommend the best manufacturers of each tech (these are high-end manufacturers not budget) And go into some of the common questions about HDTVs. A good rule to follow when shopping for HDTVs is to never trust a "budget" HDTV by how it performs in the store compared to the "high-end" HDTVs (they are often mis-calibrated to give the cheaper ones a shot at being sold)

Technology Breakdown

Flat Panels

LCD (liquid crystal display)

Pro. Smooth, crisp image, Is considered to be "the technology for gaming" lightweight, smaller sizes are available, LCDs also cost less than most other technologies to run (they use less electricity than the others)

Con. Some budget sets still have ghosting and some Sony and Samsung displays have back-light problems, Some 1080p Sharp's have a color banding problem, some cheaper sets still have ghosting, and most LCDs have poor blacks.
Dead pixels and stuck pixels are still a problem as well.

- best manufacturers (Samsung, Sony, Sharp)

Plasma- (not much to say here)

Pro. Large screen for a smaller price than most LCDs, Burn-in is virtually eliminated on high-end Plasma's, Blacks are pretty good and response time is pretty much a non-issue. Image retention only lasts for about 30-60 minutes

Con. Still subject to burn-in, image retention is a bigger problem on high-end Plasma's than burn-in, Still expensive compared to other technologies, Most 42 inch Plasma's resolution are only 1024:768
Must be broken-in before you game on it.

- best manufacturers (Pioneer, Panasonic,Hitachi,Samsung)

Rear Projection

DLP - (Digital Light Processing)

Pro. Cheap price for a big screen, Great blacks for a RPTV, Due to improvements in the light engine the rainbow effect is virtually gone (about 1% still see it) Some DLPs have a game mode that eliminate gaming lag (rhythm games are playable), 1080p is much cheaper on DLP than any other technology

Con. As with all RPTVs (except CRT) you need to replace the bulb every 6,000-10,000 hours. Some DLPs still suffer from gaming lag, and a few older sets still suffer from the rainbow effect. Most 1080p sets and a few 720p sets use "wobulation" to produce a HD picture.

- best manufacturers (Samsung, Mitsubishi)

LCD Projection (put the above stuff together:)

Pro. Large screen for the price compared to direct view LCDs, Great picture quality, pretty much the same as LCDs

Con. Same bulb problems as DLP, Several RP LCDs have slow response time (12-16ms)
several of the same problems as LCDs (dead and stuck pixels, weak blacks)

- best manufacturers (Sony, Panasonic, Hitachi)

LCOS- (Liquid Crystal on Silicon)

Pro. Great inky blacks, Ultra fast response time (most sets have a sub 3ms response time) 1080p native, One of the best pictures that money can buy (right up there with CRT) the only way that CRT beats it is black reproduction but that could soon change with the 2007 models.

Con. Still uses bulbs, expensive to produce, very few manufacturers make LCOS sets.

- best manufacturers (Sony (SXRD), JVC (HD-ila), Hitachi

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CRT- (Cathode-ray Tube)-falls under direct view and RPTV

Pro. Almost perfect blacks, very reliable, cheap, great picture quality, Contrast and response time are a non-issue.

Con. Big and Heavy, Has geometry issues (picture distortion), weigh a ton, RP CRTs need to be professionally calibrated every few years to keep looking good. Glare is a big problem with CRT. They are being phased out for newer technologies, make sure that it supports 720p or you will have problems down the road. Burn in is also a problem with CRTs. "breaking in" does not work with CRTs

- best manufacturers (Sony, Hitachi, Samsung)

HD Projectors

(special thanks to klov of gamefaqs.com for this info)
(720p projectors are now below $1000 and throw a beautiful 100" image that is very bright.)

DLP Projectors

Pro. Good contrast ratio (2000:1), very little or no "lag" (using component this isn't an issue with next-gen systems), reduced SDE - Screen Door Effect - or the absence of visible inter-pixel space.

Con. Some users see "rainbows" (most low-mid level projectors use one DLP chip and a color wheel that spins to create colors). A small number of people can see color breakdown (rainbows) during high/low contrast images (black and white films for instance). Limited or fixed placement range (no lens shift like good LCDs). Sometimes limited lens zoom too.

LCD Projectors

Pro. Good color representation. Good placement range (better lens zoom than DLP and many have lens shift - you can move the image around without moving the machine). No "rainbows".

Con. Inter-pixel issues (Screen Door). Low-resolution units show the black spaces between pixels on the projection surface. Requires viewers to be 1.5 to 2 times the screen width back to become less apparent. Issues with polarizers. Generally poorer contrast ratios on most entry-mid level units (800:1 and up).

CRT Projectors

Pro- Great contrast ratios (15,000:1), superb color representation, no visible picture structure (no pixels), no bulb replacement costs (tubes last 10,000 hours or so), durable. Very cheap.

Con- Heavy, huge and require extensive setup (placement, calibration, convergence of three colors on-screen). Require some work near high voltage areas

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Common Questions

Q, What is the best connection type?
A, HDMI is considered the best, but DVI, VGA, and Component are very good as well

Q, What should I look for when buying a HDTV?
A, 1000:1 contrast, 8ms response time (remember lower is better for response time), 500 cd/m2 brightness, at least 1 HDMI connection,
720p support, and widescreen. This is bare minimum and if you can get better do it.

Q, Is 1080p worth it?
A, Only if your HDTV is going to be 46 inches or larger and if you sit within 8 feet of it. Any smaller and the upgrade is barely noticeable.
If you plan on using your HDTV as a PC monitor then 1080p is quite useful otherwise save your money and get a 720p HDTV.

Q, Why should I get 720p when PS3's blu-ray is only 480i/p, 1080i/p?
A, Most 720p HDTVs support 1080i and a few new ones support 1080p (down-scaled of course)
(this may change with an update to the PS3 after this is posted)

Q, Should I get this HDTV?
A, First look it up on AVS Forum to see if it has any major problems, then if you still have doubts ask someone there about it
(most of them are far more knowledgeable than me. It is a forum dedicated to that stuff after all)

Q, Help! something is wrong with my HDTV
A, Go to AVS Forum.

Q, How far should I sit from my HDTV?
A, This chart shows how far you should sit from the screen, and what screen size is right for you.
http://www.cnet.com/4520-7874_1-5108580-2.html?tag=arw

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Alright these are all TV resolutions 480i is your standard tube TV resolution, 720 and 1080 are HD resolutions. Now since this is about HDTVs I will only go into depth about 720 and 1080. i stands for interlaced and p stands for progressive. With an interlaced image (most common on standard TV) you are seeing half the picture getting drawn on screen alternating between every other line (this is the most common for of interlacing) and while a still image is quite sharp it can break down and stutter in fast motion (like a football game). With a progressive image the picture is drawn all at once and won't break down as easily as an interlaced image.

#6. Ok I have narrowed it down to a couple of choices now what?

At this point you start to shop around both online and in stores, a lot of stores will match a price found online from a reputable dealer. You will also want to try out a few movies that you are familiar with to get a better understanding of how the HDTV performs. Watch any HDTV that you are wanting to get for several hours before buying it (some store employees might get upset but will leave you alone if you reassure them that you are intending to purchase something) After viewing it and you are comfortable that it is the one that you want.... sleep on it. Trust me on this you will want to think about it away from the store and discuss it with anyone else who might be using it as well. Try to convince yourself that it isn't the right one (I have done this with several HDTVs in the past) If you manage to talk yourself out of it then you would have more than likely regretted the purchase later on. You will then want to repeat this step until you find the right one for you.

#7. Ok I have bought an HDTV, now what?

Time to find something to watch! (If you decided on a Plasma this is the time to begin the break-in period discussed in the burn in link above.
(for those that can't go to the link above what you do is reduce the settings for your HDTV to a bit below 50% of their max for about the first 200 - 300 hours of viewing this will drastically reduce your chances of getting burn in) As for any other technology you can calibrate it right away (you might want to get a professional to do this if you are unfamiliar with changing your TV's picture settings.) Any THX DVD should have a basic calibration program built into it (the Star Wars movies have this feature) As of right now it would be unwise to get either blu-ray or HD-DVD (the two competing high definition dvd formats) as both are new and it is not clear which one will be the winner (google beta vs VHF for a good idea of what happens during a format war) Now back to gaming, which system is right for your HDTV? Right off I want to say that all of the new systems will look great on almost any HDTV. Now if you invested in 1080p the PS3 would be a very sound choice (the built in blu-ray player is a big plus as well) And with several 1080p enabled games out now or coming out soon you will get the most out of your 1080p HDTV. Most 360 games run in 720p which will still look great even on a 1080p HDTV but true 1080p will look crisper than 720p. As for the Wii, it maxes out at 480p but it also has widescreen support and is much more affordable (after buying an HDTV odds are that your wallet will be a bit depleted after all.) than either of the other systems (much more family friendly as well).

Well there you have it, A basic rundown of HDTV and it's many forms. With the FCC shutting off all analog broadcasts and switching them to digital in 2009, getting an HDTV now could save you a few headaches in a few years. I hope that this has helped in your understanding of HDTVs and will aid you in the purchase of one if you decide that one is for you. If not then I that you learned something and I will not try to force you to buy one (unlike those pushy Electronic store salesmen) Enjoy your purchase if you made one and have a great day.

Any and all links are the property of the site that they go to or of the message board user that posted them.
Thanks to all that helped me over the past 2 years to gather this information.

PENDRAGOON Contributing Writer Gamer's Perspective

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