I do not like our new HDTV, Sam I am...

[Kitsunexus]

Seriously, 42' of television power and it makes EVERYTHING YOU PLUG INTO IT LOOK LIKE SHIT.


I am going to stick with my Emerson 20' flat-CRT TV for a LONG TIME.

[Golgo13]

Yeah, I know what you mean, unless you are the type that plays "Xbox360" or "PS3" all the time,which if you were, you probably would not be posting on a refined forum of connoisseurs such as this.

I have an HDTV, the only way I can play old school games that look decent is with it hooked up to the laptop and run emulators on it.  When I try to run my real consoles, it looks well...like shit, thats pretty much the best way I can describe it.  Next time I buy a TV, its gonna be one of those old school late 80's or early 90's CRT's, probably a Sony.  Since I pretty much only play old school consoles, a TV to match would be great.

[Joe Redifer]

Avoid HDTVs if you want to play any console before Dreamcast.  Heck, unless you have a component setup, DC and PS2 would be better on a regular TV as well.

[Seldane]

HDTV is overrated. 720p is NOT high resolution! At 1080p we're talking, but it seems it isn't widely used. 720p should've never been made.

[Kitsunexus]

At 1080p we're talking, but it seems it isn't widely used.

That's what we have, and it doesn't really look HD to me.

[NecroPhile]

That's what we have, and it doesn't really look HD to me.

Are you feeding it from a 1080p source and over an appropriate cable?  If not, then you're relying on the television's upscaling hardware, which is often sub par.

[Seldane]

If it doesn't "look" HD, it isn't. I assure you, when you see real HD - you'll REALLY notice the difference.

[SignOfZeta]

If you have a HD source, like a 360/PS3 or HDDVD/BluRay player using HDMI, and you can't see an *enormous* difference you either:

1) Have a total POS TV
2) Have total POS eyes

If you are just watching cable TV or something it won't make any difference. Shit, it will probably look worse.

[Joe Redifer]

720p should've never been made.

1080i should have never been made.  It is totally worthless.  Interlacing is a bad idea.  Though I agree that 1080p should be the ONLY HD format.  That is only a few dozen or so lines away from digital cinema quality which is shown in commercial theaters.

[nat]

If you are just watching cable TV or something it won't make any difference. Shit, it will probably look worse.

Yeah our regular cable looks like such ass on our new(ish) HD LCD. Far worse than on the CRTs in the other rooms. It sucks, but I really don't care enough to want to get an HD cable box from the cable company.

I really want to get a next-gen disc player so I can at least take advantage of HD movies, but I want this format war to hurry up and end before I do that. Although with the announcements this weekned it looks like that might've happened.

[SNKNostalgia]

It is funny how it has finally come to time that we have to collect Standard TVs much like classic consoles. 15 years from now on E-bay...... OMFG a Sony 27" Trinitron $1000, yessss. Why the hell can't the companies making HDTVs just simply put in a seperate TV circuit designed to make standard NTSC look at least decent? Surely they should know that people are still using VCRs and of course standard Cable TV.

BTW Nat, a HD cable TV box won't make much difference for your typical channels like Comedy Central, Cartoon Net., USA, FX etc.... The only thing it will help is the same optional channels offered in HD which is just ESPN, TBS and channels that I have no interest in watching ever. I swear it seems like it is going to be another 5 years until HD is more or less fully supported.

[SignOfZeta]

Yeah, HD cable is fucking crap. It's higher in resolution sure, but the artifacting is pretty much the same so everything looks like...not even as good as DVD.

[NecroPhile]

Though I agree that 1080p should be the ONLY HD format.

Screw that.  Bandwidth be damned, full speed ahead to 2160p!

Why the hell can't the companies making HDTVs just simply put in a seperate TV circuit designed to make standard NTSC look at least decent? Surely they should know that people are still using VCRs and of course standard Cable TV.

Agreed, though some sets do use higher quality scaling hardware than others.

[Seldane]

Screw that.  Bandwidth be damned, full speed ahead to 2160p!

In the PC world, we have XHD resolution - 2560x1600. It would be interesting to watch TV in that format.

[NecroPhile]

In the PC world, we have XHD resolution - 2560x1600. It would be interesting to watch TV in that format.

Week sauce, my friend.  2160p (a.k.a. Quad HDTV) is 3840x2160, though I don't know of any systems (projector, LCD, or whatever) or content that supports it.  They'd also have to come up with a replacement for HDMI, as it's bandwidth is too low; the high resolution displays that you mentioned require a dual head video card to use the bandwidth of two cables.

[Seldane]

Yeah, it requires a dual-dvi connection. But every video card has two dvi-ports.

How about the new standard that's present on the new Geforce 9 series - Displayport. Does it have enough bandwidth for "quad hdtv"?

[Joe Redifer]

Actually it requires a single dual-link DVI port.  If you want two 2560x1600 monitors side by side, then you'd need two DVI ports (both dual link).

[NecroPhile]

How about the new standard that's present on the new Geforce 9 series - Displayport. Does it have enough bandwidth for "quad hdtv"?

Nope - Displayport maxes out at 2560x1600.  I hope it takes off, as the royalties for HDMI are steep ($10,000 yearly fee plus a nickel for every port).  It's not a big deal for the heavy hitters, but it's costly for the little guys.

Actually it requires a single dual-link DVI port.  If you want two 2560x1600 monitors side by side, then you'd need two DVI ports (both dual link).

True, if your video card has dual-link ports.

[Kitsunexus]

If you are just watching cable TV or something it won't make any difference. Shit, it will probably look worse.

That's what we're doing.

[quoth09]

I bought a newer Philips CRT last year, as a replacement of my 36" Sony WEGA CRT that I had to get rid of, and it has a digital receiver in it, but the tv is supposed to still be analog. Not sure what is going on with these newer TVs, but this one is ASS. No matter what I do, I can't get it to look anything like what my previous unit displayed. The colors are off, and no matter how I calibrate it, I can't ever seem to get the picture that I really want out of it.

I jumped on this because the stores were clearing out other models, and the TV that I did want, they stopped carrying (I was waiting for it to drop down in price). They replaced it with another model that has a different frame color, but has no S-Video! The stores even say it has one, but it doesn't! There is just a sticker there to plug the hole. So out of fear that I wouldn't be able to get another one before I moved, I jumped, and now I feel fucked. I need to start looking around for something else and ditch this piece of shit. I don't care to have a damn ATSC tuner on my tv anyway. I don't watch anything besides DVDs and play video games on it. Also, all the newer ones that have ATSC tuners in them seem to change channels slower.

For those unfortunate to only have the option of an HD unit, the only way you will ever get your game systems and older units to look good on an HD TV is to buy a very expensive upscaler that gives you next to no delay. Look at spending probably double what the TV cost. That is currently the only solution.

[SNKNostalgia]

Yeah, HD cable is fucking crap. It's higher in resolution sure, but the artifacting is pretty much the same so everything looks like...not even as good as DVD.

The only benefit for me is that you do get to see the optional HD versions of some regular channels. I have On Demand (I only rent free movies really) and Stars/Encore, so it would be worth it to be able to watch those in higher res and in component video even on a Standard TV. Plus, my regular Digital Cable Box only has composite and stereo jacks. It also causes interference through my AV switcher so I have to unscrew the cable when I watch DVDs or play games. Blpthhhhhh!!!! There is even a black screen with RF like interference when the box is turned off on the line-in channel. It is like it takes analog, turns it into digital, and then back to analog. Also, I could have sworn they made regular boxes with S-video jacks at least a generation or two ago. I may just upgrade the box soon.

[Joe Redifer]

it has a digital receiver in it, but the tv is supposed to still be analog.

It has a digital tuner, which means it can tune into a digital broadcast (MPEG 2 SD and HD, though it probably displays everything as SD).  It probably lacks an HDMI port so all connections are analog straight to the tube.

[quoth09]

it has a digital receiver in it, but the tv is supposed to still be analog.

It has a digital tuner, which means it can tune into a digital broadcast (MPEG 2 SD and HD, though it probably displays everything as SD).  It probably lacks an HDMI port so all connections are analog straight to the tube.

yeah it does. it down converts to 480i SD. no HDMI port, only standard up to component.

[Kitsunexus]

This is our TV, btw.

[NecroPhile]

This is our TV, btw.

Insignia, eh?  I don't know whose scaling hardware is in that thing, but at that price, I wouldn't have expected much.  With televisions, scotch, and hookers - you get what you pay for.

[Kitsunexus]

This is our TV, btw.

Insignia, eh?  I don't know whose scaling hardware is in that thing, but at that price, I wouldn't have expected much. 

I actually like the TV now though...it was in ZOOM mode, we put it in WIDE mode and it looks great.

[nat]

Insignia is a store-exclusive (Best Buy?) brand name they stick on all their stuff.... The TV was actually manufactured by a company called "Norcent"

[Kitsunexus]

Insignia is a store-exclusive (Best Buy?) brand name they stick on all their stuff.

That's true, I've seen Insignia MP3 players. But yeah, I've made peace with the TV.

[Joe Redifer]

I wonder which is better: Insignia (Best Buy) or Realistic (Radio Shack).

[Kitsunexus]

I wonder which is better: Insignia (Best Buy) or Realistic (Radio Shack).

Realistic, by far. Before we moved out to our new house, I had a pair of Realistic bookshelf speakers. They were PHENOMENAL, almost up there with pro audio monitors. For whatever reason though, we left them behind.

[Joe Redifer]

Probably made back when Radio Shack wasn't a mockery of electronics.

[NecroPhile]

I wonder which is better: Insignia (Best Buy) or Realistic (Radio Shack).

Back in the nineties, Radio Shack televisions were rebadged RCAs and their receivers were rebadged Pioneers.  Pretty decent stuff, if unexciting, though the dipole Lineaeum speakers were pretty kick ass for the price.  Maybe that's what you had, Kitsune.

[Kitsunexus]

I wonder which is better: Insignia (Best Buy) or Realistic (Radio Shack).

Back in the nineties, Radio Shack televisions were rebadged RCAs and their receivers were rebadged Pioneers.  Pretty decent stuff, if unexciting, though the dipole Lineaeum speakers were pretty kick ass for the price.  Maybe that's what you had, Kitsune.

YES! That was the word, Lineaeum! THOSE SPEAKERS RULED!

[guyjin]

I wonder which is better: Insignia (Best Buy) or Realistic (Radio Shack).

Don't forget iLO (walmart) 

[nat]

All those store-exclusive brands are just rebadged products by "real" manufacturers. Sometimes not even the same manufacturer.

For example, that Insignia TV Kitsunexus got is a re-badged Norcent. I have an Insignia portable DVD player with a 10" screen from Best Buy that is a re-badged something-or-other (not Norcent). Daewoo maybe, I can't remember.

[Kitsunexus]

Daewoo maybe, I can't remember.

That's probably correct, back when CRT TVs were still being sold Best Buy was like DAEWOO CENTRAL. 0___0