You’ve gawked at them in stores, you’ve heard about a friend of a friend having one, and they’ve even become a staple in any episode of MTV’s “Cribs.”
In the past, HDTVs have been reserved for the upper echelon of the tax brackets; something that would be nice, but it’s just out of your price range.
Not anymore. As with any technology, the market is getting saturated. New technologies appear on a routine basis and more and more companies are trying to cash in on the hot, new technology. In the end, it all comes down to one distinct advantage for the consumer: lower prices.
Purchasing an HDTV isn’t as easy as getting an older set. You don’t just walk into Wal-Mart or Best Buy and pick one up on a whim. You’ll need to hop online and do some of your own research.
So what exactly is HDTV? In short, it stands for High Definition Television. The old standby tubes of yore that we all have are SDTV, or Standard Definition.
There are five main types of HDTVs at the moment. The first is the CRT (Cathode Ray Tube). These use the same display technologies that your old set uses, and they look similar, too. The good thing about CRTs is that they provide arguably the best display quality of any HDTV.
The cons are cost, size and weight. The nature of the technology also limits the display sizes to around 40 inches, which might be too small for some. Not to mention that a 40 inch set is going to weigh around 200-300 pounds. Hope you have some strong friends.
CRT HDTVs can start about $500 for 26 inches and up.
The next technology is plasma. When most people talk about HDTVs in general, they usually say “plasma.”
Their flat-panel nature enables them to be positioned pretty much anywhere you’d like.
However, they are also susceptible to burn-in. That is, images that remain static on the screen for too long can literally be scarred into the display screen forever.
Plasmas can get expensive, starting around $1,000 for 30 inches. Fortunately, they seem to be experiencing the greatest price drop out of all the HDTV technologies.
On the heels of plasma comes LCD displays. Although they’re generally about the same size and thickness as plasmas, they suffer from a lack of image quality. On the plus side, burn-in is nonexistent and the displays can often double as a television and large screen computer monitor.
LCD’s run about the same price as plasmas.
Next are RPTVs, or Rear Projection. These operate similarly to the big screens of yester-year. They approach CRTs in color brightness and contrast and the cost is relatively cheap. A 52 inch RPTV will run about the same as a 30 inch CRT.
On the downside, burn-in is most prevalent in this type of HDTV.
Depending on the brand, 42 inch and up RPTVs can start anywhere from $1,000 to $1,500.
Last but not least is DLP. Digital Light Processing televisions are the closest to CRTs in terms of image quality. Burn-in is also non-existent.
The cost is a bit prohibitive to some. A 50 inch DLP can start at about $2,000.
These HDTV types can usually be found a lot cheaper online.
Pay attention to bells and whistles. The two most important features to pay attention to, at this moment, are HDMI inputs and upscaling.
Upscaling is what happens when your HDTV receives a signal in something other than its native resolution. For instance, what happens when your television is a 720p set and receives a 1080i signal? Most will scale the image down to a 720p signal that will display on your set and vice versa. It’s important that when you’re buying your set you make sure that it includes proper scaling.
It’s important to know that just having a HDTV doesn’t mean you’ll instantly see everything in a whole new light. You actually need high definition programming to get the full effect. Don’t worry, the HDTVs will still display standard broadcasts, but if you’re going to drop some hard-earned money on a nice television, you’ll want to get the most out of it.
Most major cable and satellite companies offer HD programming by such channels as ESPN, Discovery and HBO. Northland Cable should start carrying it soon.
HDTV offers such startling clarity that many TV shows will have to redesign sets. The high quality offered by HDTV is forcing designers to change their strategies.
Go into your local electronics retailer, walk to the televisions and spend a while looking at the sets to see what you like best. Make sure that, no matter where you’re checking out the displays, they actually show real HD content. Otherwise, you won’t see HD in all its glory.