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HDTV = I Love ATSC

AbsoluteZeroAbsoluteZero The new film by Quentin KoopantinoRegistered User regular
edited November 2007 in Moe's Stupid Technology Tavern
So my HDTV is only a couple weeks old now. I'm sitting here watching PBS (Wired Science, if you're wondering what show) in gorgeous crystal clear 1080i with Dolby Digital surround sound... and I'm getting it over a pair of fucking rabbit ears.

I only get a couple of digital (ATSC) channels with my antenna (only a couple of the local broadcasters have made the switch to digital), but those I do get come in perfectly clear. I mean, this makes my digital cable look like horse shit, and it's completely free. I can't get over it. I never thought I'd use rabbit ears again, but here I am. It's some weird mish-mash of old and new technology and it's totally fucking awesome.

So here's the question... why the the hell isn't everyone doing this? Why is the FCC mandated digital switch-over date constantly pushed back? I mean, the sound and image are great even in standard def. Everyone could use those same old antennas, get a new tuner and viola. Perfect picture, perfect sound. Just makes no damn sense to me. OTA digital television is the best thing ever.

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AbsoluteZero on

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    jackaljackal Fuck Yes. That is an orderly anal warehouse. Registered User regular
    edited November 2007
    Look up "cliff effect." That is what I am currently having a problem with. I live in an area with a lot of multipath. My decoder is probably a gen 4. I probably wouldn't be having any problems with gen 5 or 6 decoder.

    jackal on
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    Moe FwackyMoe Fwacky Right Here, Right Now Drives a BuickModerator mod
    edited November 2007
    I would say everybody's not doing this because not everybody can afford an HDTV yet. I'm a poor college student with a 20" flat screen (not panel) Sanyo and 90 analog cable channels. If the FCC changed over to digital HD next week, I'd be fucked out of being able to watch anything without getting a downsampler and a digital cable box, both things I can't pay for right now. Maybe in a few years I'll have upgraded, but until prices come down, I'm not buying a digital TV.

    Moe Fwacky on
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    halkunhalkun Registered User regular
    edited November 2007
    Don't own a TV, but also it's because also because the HDTV providers pooped all over the standards, what with the broadcast flag and whatnot.

    Find someone with a HDTV that only does 480i/p and 1080i with component inputs. Watch what happens when you plug a PS3 in and you want to play in 720. Watch what happens when you have a box that requires HDCP.

    I knew someone who bought an HDTV, and got digital cable, and then PLUGGED THE COAX INTO THE TV. He thought HD = 16:9. He went almost two years paying for HD content, not even realizing he never even saw it.

    halkun on
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    AbsoluteZeroAbsoluteZero The new film by Quentin Koopantino Registered User regular
    edited November 2007
    _______moe wrote: »
    I would say everybody's not doing this because not everybody can afford an HDTV yet. I'm a poor college student with a 20" flat screen (not panel) Sanyo and 90 analog cable channels. If the FCC changed over to digital HD next week, I'd be fucked out of being able to watch anything without getting a downsampler and a digital cable box, both things I can't pay for right now. Maybe in a few years I'll have upgraded, but until prices come down, I'm not buying a digital TV.

    I too am a poor college student, but I recently snagged myself a 32" LCD HDTV for about 500 wingwangs. Not much different than what a poor college student would pay for a goddamn video game console these days.

    AbsoluteZero on
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    MblackwellMblackwell Registered User regular
    edited November 2007
    halkun wrote: »
    Don't own a TV, but also it's because also because the HDTV providers pooped all over the standards, what with the broadcast flag and whatnot.

    Find someone with a HDTV that only does 480i/p and 1080i with component inputs. Watch what happens when you plug a PS3 in and you want to play in 720. Watch what happens when you have a box that requires HDCP.

    I knew someone who bought an HDTV, and got digital cable, and then PLUGGED THE COAX INTO THE TV. He thought HD = 16:9. He went almost two years paying for HD content, not even realizing he never even saw it.

    Erm... coax can carry an HD signal afaik. And that's what Wikipedia tells me.

    Edit: A quick look tells me, yes this is true, but also that most cable boxes won't output the signal over it.

    Mblackwell on
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    TreelootTreeloot Registered User regular
    edited November 2007
    I get HD content with my basic cable subscription, so I don't bother with rabbit ears. I love my QAM tuner.

    I only get the local channels and PBS in HD though. If the cable company's basic HD subscription didn't suck so much my family would probably get it.
    halkun wrote: »

    I knew someone who bought an HDTV, and got digital cable, and then PLUGGED THE COAX INTO THE TV. He thought HD = 16:9. He went almost two years paying for HD content, not even realizing he never even saw it.


    It seems like almost everybody who has an HDTV doesn't know what the hell they're doing with it. A lot of them don't get HD content on their TVs, stretch the aspect ratio, and have their shit hooked up with composite cables.

    Stores and cable/satellite companies need to do a better job educating customers about HD. The results of Best Buy's HD survey don't reflect well on the company: http://consumerist.com/consumer/survey-says/best-buy-says-you-dont-know-what-youre-doing-with-hd-303617.php

    Treeloot on
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    ToyDToyD Registered User regular
    edited November 2007
    My father is one you mention. He's had an HDTV for a few years and still has a regular cable box despite the HDTV cable box with HD channels being $0 more. I think it's more the technology becoming more confusing every day with all the resolutions, plus the extra shit like the cables, formats, flags, and DRM shit being added every day.

    I'll end up fixing it up for him, but I'm a damn engineer and it takes me research to figure out what all this shit means if I don't keep up with it.

    ToyD on
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    AbsoluteZeroAbsoluteZero The new film by Quentin Koopantino Registered User regular
    edited November 2007
    Treeloot wrote: »
    I get HD content with my basic cable subscription, so I don't bother with rabbit ears. I love my QAM tuner.

    I only get the local channels and PBS in HD though. If the cable company's basic HD subscription didn't suck so much my family would probably get it.
    halkun wrote: »

    I knew someone who bought an HDTV, and got digital cable, and then PLUGGED THE COAX INTO THE TV. He thought HD = 16:9. He went almost two years paying for HD content, not even realizing he never even saw it.


    It seems like almost everybody who has an HDTV doesn't know what the hell they're doing with it. A lot of them don't get HD content on their TVs, stretch the aspect ratio, and have their shit hooked up with composite cables.

    Stores and cable/satellite companies need to do a better job educating customers about HD. The results of Best Buy's HD survey don't reflect well on the company: http://consumerist.com/consumer/survey-says/best-buy-says-you-dont-know-what-youre-doing-with-hd-303617.php

    We get digital cable but no HD is offered, not even QAM, from our po-dunk small town provider. Not much choice living out in the sticks. None the less, OTA is still fantastic, I just wish I got more channels. Those other local stations need to make the switch, damnit.

    I wonder why people get so confused about HD. It's not really that hard to understand. Maybe it's a generational thing...

    AbsoluteZero on
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    ToyDToyD Registered User regular
    edited November 2007
    I'd say that the HD part isn't that hard to understand, but it's the sensationalist crap each manufacturer throws onto their equipment to try to get you to purchase it. It's not so easy to pick out exactly what you HAVE to have vs what a manufacturer just made up on the spot to put on a label.

    ToyD on
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