Maybe this might not make sense to you guys, but I just want a normal sized screen -- less than 30" -- that is an LCD panel with 1920x1080 resolution. In truth, the resolution isn't that critical for me since I have bad eyes, but I sit really close to the TV to compensate (like 4 feet away).
But when I watch sports I keep my glasses on, and I want that detail!
I have a 42 inch Sony Vega Plasma FP. I love it, but not sure it was worth the price. Picture is great. I went ahead and coughed up the extra dough on the 4 yr extended warranty. Highly recommend that to anyone thinking of getting a Plasma FP.
Maybe this might not make sense to you guys, but I just want a normal sized screen -- less than 30" -- that is an LCD panel with 1920x1080 resolution. In truth, the resolution isn't that critical for me since I have bad eyes, but I sit really close to the TV to compensate (like 4 feet away).
Sounds like you need a Apple 23" Cinema Display (1920 x 1200) and EyeTv/ATI remote. You can see it from 15 ft away up to point blank range. DVD's movies look really great on it.
You also get a nice computer with it for less than most plasmas.
BUT:
I don't think HD content can be imported into a computer, there's this scrambling/encoding feature that every HDTV and every transmitting device has. The purpose is to have no unscrambled/free signal going through any cable, so it can't be split or tapped, you see a DVI plug doesn't mean you can just plug your computer into it.
And HD content is frigging expensive, cable today is a joke and is bleeding people dry. Dump your cable, get your news online and subscribe to Netflix.
Sounds like you need a Apple 23" Cinema Display (1920 x 1200) and EyeTv/ATI remote. You can see it from 15 ft away up to point blank range. DVD's movies look really great on it.
Sadly no. A DVD won't really look any 'better' on a 1920x1200 screen since it's only 720x480. Some monitors have nice scaling options, but they still introduce a bit of blur...
Quote:
I don't think HD content can be imported into a computer, there's this scrambling/encoding feature that every HDTV and every transmitting device has. The purpose is to have no unscrambled/free signal going through any cable, so it can't be split or tapped, you see a DVI plug doesn't mean you can just plug your computer into it.
The "broadcast bit" nonsense hasn't been implemented yet. People are capturing HD content uncompressed onto their computers all over the place, with PCI adapters like the MyHD cards.
Quote:
And HD content is frigging expensive, cable today is a joke and is bleeding people dry. Dump your cable, get your news online and subscribe to Netflix.
I get HD content from NBC, ABC, CBS, PBS, etc. for the low, low price of $0/month thanks to this nifty invention called a VHF/UHF antenna.
I can also get ESPN-HD, InHD, InHD2, HBO-HD, Starz-HD, Showtime-HD, Cinemax-HD if I pay $5/month extra and have all the SD channels in my package.
I got HDTV projector, but since i'm "borrowing" Satellite signal from our Southern neighbors, and no-one knows when it will stop working (then again it's been working for the last 2 years no probs) i'm kinda reluctant in spending $500 on HDTV receiver.
My local cable company does not offer HDTV, and i don't want to get another satellite dish (mostly because they would have to install it and may have a question or two about my existing dish pointing in "wrong" direction..)
I run rabit ears through an HD receiver and into a Infocus X1 projector.
HDTV is great... when it works. Unfortunately, current hardware and service quality is really quite pathetic.
It is routine for stations to broadcast 3.1 channels of silence along with a stereo source. Sound sync issues are still around. Aspect ratios require constant baby-sitting.
But most of all, signal strength just isn't there for a non-insignificant number of people. It is usually necessary to setup a rooftop antenna or pay more to cable/satellite providers just to get stations that you _already_ have. After doing this, periodic dropouts and jitters should still be expected.
With that said, I absolutely love HDTV. It is so impressive in 1080i (non-compressed / off-the-air) that DVDs are now blurry to my eyes. That's right, DVDs are low res!
Greater resolution changes everything. While before you may have noticed the formation chosen by the defensive line... with HDTV, their facial expressions hold your attention.
During the State of the Union broadcast, you could see all kinds of subtle behavior quirks of politicians. Regular TV? You see everyone smiling and clapping. HDTV... you see which smiles are forced and which are genuine.
Finally, I predict a revival of the scene-change segue. Regular TV won't hold your attention with a typical cityscape shot... HDTV has you peering into the cityscape pondering whatever it is you ponder when on a sky scraper's viewing deck.
It is so impressive in 1080i (non-compressed / off-the-air) that DVDs are now blurry to my eyes.
Umm, I am not sure what you mean, but I am 98% sure that HDTV is compressed. This really becomes noticable if you are watching a broadcast that contains strobe lights. The codec breaks down and you begin to see artifacts and boxes because of all the quick color changing.
Umm, I am not sure what you mean, but I am 98% sure that HDTV is compressed. This really becomes noticable if you are watching a broadcast that contains strobe lights. The codec breaks down and you begin to see artifacts and boxes because of all the quick color changing.
I suppose all video is compressed... technically.
HDTV that you receive over satellite or via cable has gone through one more stage of compression than has HDTV off-the-air. This is done in order to make room for more channels.
With HDTV picked up OTA (with an antenna) there aren't any artifacts. That is of course... if you are lucky enough to pull in a strong signal.
HDTV that you receive over satellite or via cable has gone through one more stage of compression than has HDTV off-the-air. This is done in order to make room for more channels.
That is not technically true at all. DSS tuners use the same 8VSB signaling as off-air tuners. It's up to the providers to decide if they want to compress the video more.
Cable companies use QAM signaling, but that doesn't necessarily mean they are compressing the video further. Per channel, cable has more than enough bandwidth for 1080i at full tilt.
Quote:
With HDTV picked up OTA (with an antenna) there aren't any artifacts. That is of course... if you are lucky enough to pull in a strong signal.
There are artifacts even on a 20 mbps 1080i transmission. The codecs they use are inherently lossy.
I wasn't trying to promote OTA over SAT or cable. All three definitely have merits. Rather, I was explaining comments about uncompressed 1080i. Nearly all cable and satellite providers deliver lower bit-rates than their terrestrial broadcast counterparts. On demand in particular has spurred cable companies to pinch bandwidth wherever possible. This isn't to say that OTA is better. It has other drawbacks such as poor reception and zero support.
And I also agree on the lossy nature of the mpeg codecs. However, the pixelation and boxes that people notice aren't really 'HDTV' compression artifacts. They are invariably artifacts from the second stage of compression happening at a satellite uplink or cable company. I typically refer to this as 'cable' or 'satellite' compression. It seems to get the distinction across better to people who'll never rember 16:9 / 4:3 let alone 8vsb / cofdm.
sorry... Perhaps I shouldn't dumb down stuff so much. Maybe it's dealing with non-techies at work all day that's done this to me?
Comments
But when I watch sports I keep my glasses on, and I want that detail!
Originally posted by Splinemodel
Maybe this might not make sense to you guys, but I just want a normal sized screen -- less than 30" -- that is an LCD panel with 1920x1080 resolution. In truth, the resolution isn't that critical for me since I have bad eyes, but I sit really close to the TV to compensate (like 4 feet away).
Sounds like you need a Apple 23" Cinema Display (1920 x 1200) and EyeTv/ATI remote. You can see it from 15 ft away up to point blank range. DVD's movies look really great on it.
You also get a nice computer with it for less than most plasmas.
BUT:
I don't think HD content can be imported into a computer, there's this scrambling/encoding feature that every HDTV and every transmitting device has. The purpose is to have no unscrambled/free signal going through any cable, so it can't be split or tapped, you see a DVI plug doesn't mean you can just plug your computer into it.
And HD content is frigging expensive, cable today is a joke and is bleeding people dry. Dump your cable, get your news online and subscribe to Netflix.
Originally posted by Sailfish
Sounds like you need a Apple 23" Cinema Display (1920 x 1200) and EyeTv/ATI remote. You can see it from 15 ft away up to point blank range. DVD's movies look really great on it.
Sadly no. A DVD won't really look any 'better' on a 1920x1200 screen since it's only 720x480. Some monitors have nice scaling options, but they still introduce a bit of blur...
I don't think HD content can be imported into a computer, there's this scrambling/encoding feature that every HDTV and every transmitting device has. The purpose is to have no unscrambled/free signal going through any cable, so it can't be split or tapped, you see a DVI plug doesn't mean you can just plug your computer into it.
The "broadcast bit" nonsense hasn't been implemented yet. People are capturing HD content uncompressed onto their computers all over the place, with PCI adapters like the MyHD cards.
And HD content is frigging expensive, cable today is a joke and is bleeding people dry. Dump your cable, get your news online and subscribe to Netflix.
I get HD content from NBC, ABC, CBS, PBS, etc. for the low, low price of $0/month thanks to this nifty invention called a VHF/UHF antenna.
I can also get ESPN-HD, InHD, InHD2, HBO-HD, Starz-HD, Showtime-HD, Cinemax-HD if I pay $5/month extra and have all the SD channels in my package.
My local cable company does not offer HDTV, and i don't want to get another satellite dish (mostly because they would have to install it and may have a question or two about my existing dish pointing in "wrong" direction..)
So technically i'm all ready to go :-)
do you have and Mac HD input/output card links?
I heard there is this guy who used to own Digital Voodoo and went off and started his own company, makes Mac HD cards exclusively.
thanks in advance
Got it BlackMagic Design, got lucky on Google today.
http://www.decklink.com/productsdeckhd.asp
HDTV is great... when it works. Unfortunately, current hardware and service quality is really quite pathetic.
It is routine for stations to broadcast 3.1 channels of silence along with a stereo source. Sound sync issues are still around. Aspect ratios require constant baby-sitting.
But most of all, signal strength just isn't there for a non-insignificant number of people. It is usually necessary to setup a rooftop antenna or pay more to cable/satellite providers just to get stations that you _already_ have. After doing this, periodic dropouts and jitters should still be expected.
With that said, I absolutely love HDTV. It is so impressive in 1080i (non-compressed / off-the-air) that DVDs are now blurry to my eyes. That's right, DVDs are low res!
Greater resolution changes everything. While before you may have noticed the formation chosen by the defensive line... with HDTV, their facial expressions hold your attention.
During the State of the Union broadcast, you could see all kinds of subtle behavior quirks of politicians. Regular TV? You see everyone smiling and clapping. HDTV... you see which smiles are forced and which are genuine.
Finally, I predict a revival of the scene-change segue. Regular TV won't hold your attention with a typical cityscape shot... HDTV has you peering into the cityscape pondering whatever it is you ponder when on a sky scraper's viewing deck.
It is so impressive in 1080i (non-compressed / off-the-air) that DVDs are now blurry to my eyes.
Umm, I am not sure what you mean, but I am 98% sure that HDTV is compressed. This really becomes noticable if you are watching a broadcast that contains strobe lights. The codec breaks down and you begin to see artifacts and boxes because of all the quick color changing.
Originally posted by adpowers
Umm, I am not sure what you mean, but I am 98% sure that HDTV is compressed. This really becomes noticable if you are watching a broadcast that contains strobe lights. The codec breaks down and you begin to see artifacts and boxes because of all the quick color changing.
I suppose all video is compressed... technically.
HDTV that you receive over satellite or via cable has gone through one more stage of compression than has HDTV off-the-air. This is done in order to make room for more channels.
With HDTV picked up OTA (with an antenna) there aren't any artifacts. That is of course... if you are lucky enough to pull in a strong signal.
Originally posted by dfiler
I suppose all video is compressed... technically.
HDTV that you receive over satellite or via cable has gone through one more stage of compression than has HDTV off-the-air. This is done in order to make room for more channels.
That is not technically true at all. DSS tuners use the same 8VSB signaling as off-air tuners. It's up to the providers to decide if they want to compress the video more.
Cable companies use QAM signaling, but that doesn't necessarily mean they are compressing the video further. Per channel, cable has more than enough bandwidth for 1080i at full tilt.
With HDTV picked up OTA (with an antenna) there aren't any artifacts. That is of course... if you are lucky enough to pull in a strong signal.
There are artifacts even on a 20 mbps 1080i transmission. The codecs they use are inherently lossy.
Betcha didn't know we were agreeing.
I wasn't trying to promote OTA over SAT or cable. All three definitely have merits. Rather, I was explaining comments about uncompressed 1080i. Nearly all cable and satellite providers deliver lower bit-rates than their terrestrial broadcast counterparts. On demand in particular has spurred cable companies to pinch bandwidth wherever possible. This isn't to say that OTA is better. It has other drawbacks such as poor reception and zero support.
And I also agree on the lossy nature of the mpeg codecs. However, the pixelation and boxes that people notice aren't really 'HDTV' compression artifacts. They are invariably artifacts from the second stage of compression happening at a satellite uplink or cable company. I typically refer to this as 'cable' or 'satellite' compression. It seems to get the distinction across better to people who'll never rember 16:9 / 4:3 let alone 8vsb / cofdm.
sorry... Perhaps I shouldn't dumb down stuff so much. Maybe it's dealing with non-techies at work all day that's done this to me?